Bernama said Mahathir would meet General Than Shwe, chairman of the State Peace and Development Council and other leaders.

They are expected to discuss bilateral and regional issues, the agency said.

Mahathir will be accompanied by Abdul Kadir Mohamed, foreign ministry secretary-general and other senior officials.

KUALA LUMPUR (AP)--Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad will pay a visit next week to Myanmar, where he has long backed the military regime in its contest of wills with pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

A Foreign Ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the Malaysian leader will make an official visit Jan. 3-4, followed by a private holiday through Jan. 9. Details will be disclosed later.

Mahathir was instrumental in bringing Myanmar into the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in 1997, rebuffing the U.S. and other countries which urged isolating the regime to force democratic changes.

Mahathir argued that isolating Myanmar, also known as Burma, would be counter-productive and that engagement would lead to economic improvement and eventual political reforms.

The country remains desperately poor and investment has slowed to a trickle. The military, which has ruled since 1962, refuses to hold talks with Suu Kyi, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991.

Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy overwhelmingly won the elections in 1990, but the military refused to honor the result and Parliament has never convened. Suu Kyi has remained under various forms of house arrest or restrictions.