ASEAN Foreign Ministers to Meet Myanmar Foreign Minister This Weekend — SkimNews
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- ASEAN foreign ministers will hold an informal meeting with Myanmar Foreign Minister Tin Maung Swe in Bangkok on July 12, the first such meeting in five years, confirmed by Thailand and Vietnam.
- The July 12 meeting was agreed at ASEAN's May summit, where Philippine special envoy Ma. Theresa Lazaro briefed counterparts on the 'evolving political and humanitarian situation' inside Myanmar.
- Myanmar has been excluded from ASEAN summits since late 2021 for failing to implement the Five-Point Consensus, which calls for immediate cessation of violence and inclusive national dialogue.
- The country now has approximately 3.6 million internally displaced people per the UN, most driven from their homes since the February 2021 military coup.
- Coup leader Min Aung Hlaing has launched a normalization campaign — releasing political prisoners, relocating Aung San Suu Kyi from prison to house arrest, and inviting ethnic armed groups to peace talks — moves dismissed as a sham by resistance groups.
- Thailand is leading the pro-engagement camp, while the Philippines (current ASEAN chair) and Malaysia take harder lines; Myanmar last week denied Manila's request for Lazaro to access Aung San Suu Kyi.
- Min Aung Hlaing has used his 'president' title to make state visits to China, India, and Laos, building bilateral ties with ASEAN members independently of the bloc channel.
Why it matters: The July 12 meeting is unlikely to reunite ASEAN on Myanmar: the Philippines is current chair and firmly opposed, and Myanmar just denied its envoy access to Aung San Suu Kyi. The more probable outcome is a formal bifurcation — Thailand and Laos deepen bilateral ties with the junta while the bloc keeps Myanmar locked out of summits, giving Min Aung Hlaing a diplomatic foothold without requiring any implementation of the Five-Point Consensus.
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