ASEAN Revives Myanmar Peace Push as Sides Open to Talks
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- ASEAN foreign ministers held their first in-person meeting with Myanmar's foreign minister since the 2021 coup that deposed Aung San Suu Kyi's government.
- ASEAN special envoy Maria Theresa Lazaro and Thailand's Sihasak Phuangketkeow met six rebel groups, including the Karen National Union and the Karenni National Progressive Party, who are open to dialogue but still working on a common position.
- Lazaro and Thai officials also held talks with Myanmar's military-backed National Solidarity and Peacemaking Negotiation Committee.
- Sihasak said all sides recognized a military solution was not in their interests, characterizing the next phase as "talks for talks" — negotiating how and where to hold actual negotiations.
- Thailand has offered to serve as facilitator and provide a venue for future peace talks, keeping ASEAN's stalled "Five-Point Consensus" plan alive.
- ASEAN and Thailand hope to meet Aung San Suu Kyi, detained since the coup, face to face.
- The civil war has killed an estimated 100,000 people and displaced millions since the 2021 coup.
Why it matters: After years of stalled diplomacy since Myanmar's 2021 coup, ASEAN's simultaneous engagement with both the military junta and rebel groups — paired with all sides' stated recognition that fighting won't resolve the conflict — creates the first procedural opening for the Five-Point Consensus. Thailand's offer to host gives the process a concrete venue, though six rebel groups remain divided on a unified position.
