ASEAN reaffirms engagement with Myanmar, seeks to advance peace plan

Résumé détaillé

There will be “no easing” of ASEAN’s approach to Myanmar, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Theresa Lazaro says.

MANILA: Southeast Asian leaders reaffirmed the need to keep engaging with Myanmar while sticking with a plan calling for an immediate end to violence in the war-torn country, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said on Sunday (Nov 15).

Chairing the annual summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Manila, Marcos said the 11-member bloc agreed to pursue "constructive and principled engagement" while adhering to its five-point peace plan, ASEAN's framework for responding to the crisis in Myanmar since a 2021 coup.

The summit is under pressure to ease a five-year ban on Myanmar's military-backed leaders attending high-level meetings, after Thailand and several other members stepped up engagement despite Myanmar's civil war.

The army-backed government wants to normalise ties with ASEAN after its leaders were barred from summits in 2021 for not de-escalating conflict in the wake of the military coup that brought them to power.

Following a 2021 military coup, ASEAN has excluded Myanmar from high-level meetings as it has yet to make meaningful progress on the bloc's Five-Point Consensus to end hostilities.

During a meeting in April 2021, all ASEAN leaders reached a consensus about the situation in Myanmar.

First, there shall be immediate cessation of violence in Myanmar and all parties shall exercise utmost restraint.

Second, constructive dialogue among all parties concerned shall commence to seek a peaceful solution in the interests of the people.

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