ASEAN to discuss engagement with Myanmar at special meeting, Philippines says

An upcoming meeting between foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and Myanmar’s regime Foreign Minister Tin Maung Swe will tackle the regime’s engagement with the ‌regional bloc after being excluded from it over the last five years, the Philippines said on Friday. As 2026 chair of the 11-member ASEAN, the Philippines will lead Sunday’s gathering in Bangkok, the first in-person meeting with Myanmar’s regime since it seized power during a 2021 ​military coup, which led to an uprising against military rule in Myanmar. An estimated 100,000 people have been killed and over 3.7 million civilians have been displaced from their homes, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED) project and the U.N. Myanmar is now ruled by a pro-military administration led by regime leader Min Aung Hlaing, who was inaugurated president by a pro-military parliament on April 10 following highly controversial elections held by the regime from Dec. 28, 2025 to Jan. 25. The Philippine foreign ministry stressed Myanmar remained an integral part of ASEAN ​and Sunday’s meeting would be informal, giving Myanmar’s foreign minister a chance to brief counterparts on the ​situation in the country. “They are expected to exchange views on ASEAN’s engagement with Myanmar, as well as on possible concrete ‌steps ⁠in which Myanmar may address concerns on the cessation of violence, constructive dialogue among concerned parties, and humanitarian assistance,” it said in a statement. Myanmar pushback on peace plan Min Aung Hlaing is seeking to end the impasse with ASEAN and made his first state visit to an ASEAN member country, Laos, last week. Central to Myanmar’s exclusion ​was his failure to implement ​the ASEAN Five Point Consensus, the regional bloc’s peace plan that he ⁠agreed to implement in April 2021 but failed to implement over the last five years. Normalising ties with Naypyidaw could be made more challenging by a motion in ​Myanmar’s pro-military parliament to counter the peace plan, calling it interference in its ​internal affairs ⁠and a violation of ASEAN’s core principles. An article on Friday that stretched across two pages of the Global New Light of Myanmar, the military’s mouthpiece, said lawmakers had endorsed a resolution asking the government to review and ⁠challenge ASEAN’s ​position. “During the discussions, lawmakers from both houses largely supported the ​motion, arguing that ASEAN should reassess its position on Myanmar following political developments and the formation of a new elected government,” regime media reported. REUTERS