ASEAN says will continue to press Junta to allow envoy visit to Myanmar for mediation

ASEAN leaders will continue to press Myanmar's military junta to allow the organisation's special envoy to visit the country, Japan media reported. The leaders asserted that the Special Envoy be granted full access to all parties involved during his visit to Myanmar in order to foster trust and confidence. According to Kyodo News, the ASEAN Summit will call on the Myanmar junta to uphold its commitment to a five-point accord reached by the bloc's leaders in April to help find a solution to the country's political turmoil. This comes ahead of the next Southeast Asian conference, which is scheduled for October 26-28.

Following the exclusion of military leader Min Aung Hlaing from this week's ASEAN conference, Myanmar's junta pledged on Sunday, 24 October, to cooperate as much as feasible with a peace plan established with the regional bloc. The junta stated via state media that it supports the principle of peaceful coexistence with other countries and will work with ASEAN to implement a five-point agreement reached in April, according to the Bangkok Post. The Myanmar junta, which claims to be Myanmar's legal government, maintains that its takeover was not a coup, but rather a necessary and lawful intervention in response to a "danger to sovereignty" presented by Aung San Suu Kyi's party.

Junta accuses ASEAN of violating its values

On 15 October, ASEAN Foreign Ministers resolved to expel Min Aung Hlaing, the leader of a 1 February coup in Myanmar, for failing to carry out that plan, which included ceasing hostilities, opening talks, enabling humanitarian aid, and offering a special envoy unrestricted access to the country. Later, the junta retaliated, accusing ASEAN of violating its values of consensus and non-interference. It declined to send a representative from a politically neutral Myanmar in place of Min Aung Hlaing. Meanwhile, according to the Bangkok Post, ASEAN chair Brunei has not responded to Myanmar's rejection. Min Aung Hlaing's absence is an unusual snub from a bloc that has often been chastised for being slow and incompetent in dealing with member countries guilty of atrocities.

(With inputs from agencies)

(Image: AP/Representative Image)