MANILA, Sept. 4 (Xinhua) -- The Philippine government said on Tuesday that the peace talks, which will resume this week in Malaysia between the government and the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) peace panels, could enter the "final, crucial stages of negotiations."
According to Teresita Deles, presidential adviser on the peace process, the two parties will discuss the unresolved issues in the upcoming 31st round of formal exploratory talks. The Philippine government remains "cautiously optimistic" on the prospects of signing a peace agreement with the MILF this year, Deles said.
Deles said this optimism comes from the "strong desire from both sides of the table to sign a peace agreement in the earliest possible time."
But she said the issues on the table were not easy to settle. These include power and wealth sharing, territorial scope, and normalization to include disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration of the MILF's troops.
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