Rejecting ASEAN's Five-Point Consensus, Interim Government Seeks Re-entry Through Countries Including Cambodia

The interim government in Myanmar is attempting to circumvent the Five-Point Consensus approved by ASEAN to resolve the Myanmar crisis, and is seeking to overcome sanctions and exclusions by re-entering through some regional supporting countries, including Cambodia. This was learned from sources. To this end, military leader Min Aung Hlaing, as the interim president, visited Cambodia, an ASEAN member state, and was invited to discuss the Ayeyarwady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS), according to a statement. Cambodia, which supports the military coup, is a member of frameworks such as Mekong-Lancang, CLMV (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam), and ACMECS, and Myanmar is also included in these. These frameworks were established to address economic disparities and development among Mekong region countries. This year, the interim government is serving as the rotating chairman representing Myanmar in the ACMECS meetings, and observers say this is an effort to demonstrate its legitimacy and, through this, to attempt to re-enter the ASEAN bloc from which it has been excluded. ACMECS, composed of ASEAN members Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam, as well as CLMV, formed by the four countries excluding Thailand, and Mekong-Lancang regional cooperation, are seen by observers as efforts by the interim government to seek internationally recognized legitimacy based on economics. During a meeting with Hun Sen on September 11, the interim president discussed ACMECS as well as mutual support on regional and international fronts, it was learned. Furthermore, the interim president invited potential investors to the Dawei deep-sea port, which has stalled in cooperation with Russia, and special economic zones, stating that significant success could be achieved if they invest, according to their propaganda newspaper. ASEAN, due to the military coup, continues to maintain sanctions and exclusions, urging an end to violence, as the current interim president has not complied with the Five-Point Consensus adopted to resolve the Myanmar issue at the last summit he was allowed to attend. In response, the interim government has issued a statement criticizing ASEAN, stating that after the military junta transitions to an interim government through sham elections in 2025, it will proceed with its own "Myanmar way, Myanmar style" leadership, which will be rejected and opposed in the interim parliament it leads. However, it states that it will continue to engage in possible cooperation without withdrawing from ASEAN membership, but in reality, it is escalating military actions, bombing nationwide, conducting military offensives, burning and killing, while imposing restrictions on participation in peace talks and inviting them. Photo – MOI