The talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) will take place in Malaysia on February 9-10, the first formal negotiations between the two sides since President Benigno Aquino was elected to office last year.

"The government of the Philippines and the MILF have put the peace negotiations back on track," a government statement said.

The head of the government peace panel, Marivic Leonen, said the parties agreed to restart the talks during informal negotiations in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday.

Previous peace talks collapsed in 2008 after the Supreme Court outlawed a draft peace settlement that would have given the MILF control over large areas of the mineral-rich southern island of Mindanao.