The reintegration of Myanmar’s leadership into high-level summits of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is currently not on the horizon, according to the bloc's special envoy. Philippine Foreign Secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro, who holds the role of special envoy this year while the Philippines manages the rotating chairmanship, stated that the country’s readmission remains “far off.”
Speaking at a press conference in Manila, Lazaro emphasized that ASEAN is actively assessing Myanmar’s adherence to the Five-Point Consensus, a framework established in April 2021 to address the political and economic instability following the military coup. The envoy noted that there are significant questions regarding the regime's compliance. To address this, ASEAN plans to implement specific benchmarks to measure progress, with Lazaro warning that failure to meet these standards will be formally classified as non-compliance.
The Five-Point Consensus, which serves as the foundational document for ongoing discussions with Myanmar’s foreign minister, mandates an immediate cessation of violence, the provision of humanitarian aid, the appointment of a special envoy, and inclusive dialogue among all involved parties. Despite these terms, coup leader Min Aung Hlaing has largely ignored the consensus, focusing instead on military efforts to suppress opposition groups, which the regime labels as “terrorists.” This defiance led ASEAN to exclude military representatives from its summits starting in late 2021.
Since becoming president in April, Min Aung Hlaing has sought to normalize diplomatic ties with ASEAN, yet has shown no intent to follow the consensus. Earlier this month, the military-backed parliament in Myanmar officially rejected the agreement, claiming it constitutes an unwarranted interference in internal affairs and does not align with the country's current political situation. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs further argued that the Five-Point Consensus was annexed to an ASEAN statement without proper notification or a consensus among all member states, leading the government to refer to it as the “Five-Point Statement.”
Foreign Minister Tin Maung Swe communicated this stance during an informal meeting in Bangkok on July 12. The Myanmar government maintains that ASEAN must uphold the principles of sovereignty and non-interference. This meeting, brokered by Thailand, marked the first face-to-face interaction with the Myanmar foreign minister since the coup, drawing criticism from human rights groups. Despite the diplomatic impasse, Lazaro intends to lead a mission to Myanmar later this year to continue the dialogue.
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