Thailand to host two regional meetings focused on Myanmar this week
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Chaos has prevailed in Myanmar since the 2021 military coup sparked a nationwide rebellion.
PHOTO: AFP
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BANGKOK - Thailand said on Dec 16 that it will host two regional meetings on Myanmar this week, with at least one to have representatives of the junta, as Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said efforts were being made to bring Myanmar back to the fore of Asean.
Thai Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa will hold the separate consultations on Dec 19 and 20, after his country in October offered to host informal talks to find a way out of the crisis that has gripped Myanmar since a 2021 military coup.
Representatives from Myanmar will take part in the meeting on Dec 19, which Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Nikorndej Balankura said would be an informal consultation on border security and transnational crime.
Representatives from China, India, Bangladesh, Laos and Thailand, which all share borders with Myanmar, will also attend.
On Dec 20, there will be a foreign minister-level meeting on Myanmar for “interested members” of Asean, including discussing Asean’s plan for peace in the country
It is not clear if Myanmar will have any representatives at the meeting on Dec 20, and if so, at what level.
Since the coup, Asean has snubbed Myanmar’s military leaders by inviting only non-political representatives from the country to regional meetings of leaders and foreign ministers.
Malaysian PM Anwar, who will chair Asean in 2025, said on Dec 16 that he is committed to implementing Asean’s peace plan, which has made scant progress since its unveiling in April 2021 soon after the coup.
“We are taking measures through dialogues informally at different levels to ensure Myanmar participates, and bring back Myanmar to the fore of Asean,” he said at a joint press conference in Kuala Lumpur with Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra, without elaborating further.
Indonesia has said its foreign minister will attend the Dec 20 meeting.
Chaos has prevailed in Myanmar since the 2021 military coup sparked a nationwide rebellion and a civil war that has ravaged the nation of 55 million.
At a summit in October, Asean called for “an immediate cessation” of violence
