Myanmar did not show up at an annual summit of Southeast Asian nations after rejecting an invitation to send a non-political representative instead of its junta leader, a move that isolates its government internationally as it grapples with civil strife back home.
ASEAN earlier this month took a rare step in excluding Burmese Army Senior General Min Aung Hlaing from the summit in Brunei on the grounds that the regime has not done enough to end violence after seizing control of the nation in a coup in February.
Instead, the bloc extended an invitation to a diplomat from the Burmese Ministry of Foreign Affairs to attend the summit, an offer the regime flatly rejected.
Photo: Reuters
On the first day of the summit yesterday, Myanmar’s video panel was left empty while leaders from the rest of ASEAN made their appearance.
The “Myanmar representative is denied to equal rights enjoyed by other ASEAN member states,” the Burmese foreign ministry said in a statement that accused Brunei, as the current chair of ASEAN, of breaching the bloc’s charter.
The nation would pursue “due processes” under the charter to resolve the issue, it said.
At the three-day summit, some nations addressed the Myanmar situation directly.
Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri wrote on Twitter that his nation fully supported the decision made by the ASEAN chair on Myanmar’s representation at the summit.
Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha told the meeting that he hoped Myanmar would trust ASEAN to help the nation “achieve peace and harmony, as well as return to the democratic process,” Thai government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said.
ASEAN has struggled to get concessions met by Min Aung Hlaing, who declared himself prime minister in August and extended emergency rule for another two years before elections can be held.
They come under a five-point consensus agreed with Myanmar at a special summit in April that include the cessation of violence.
Myanmar has said that the general’s exclusion from the summit in favor of a diplomat is an “assault to the sovereignty of our nation.”
Its decision to skip the summit is a further strain in ties between ASEAN and one of its members as the bloc faces international pressure, particularly from the US, to hold the regime accountable for the worsening domestic situation.
The other nine ASEAN members were due to take part in high-profile meetings with US President Joe Biden and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (李克強) later yesterday.
Ahead of the ASEAN summit, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan on Monday met virtually with representatives of the pro-democracy shadow government directly challenging the legitimacy of the Burmese junta to discuss the situation on the ground.
“Sullivan underscored continued US support for the pro-democracy movement in Burma and they discussed ongoing efforts to restore Burma’s path to democracy,” the White House said in a statement on Monday.
He was also concerned over the “Burmese military’s brutal violence and noted that the US will continue to promote accountability for the coup,” it said.
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