It seems clear that unless the junta starts cooperating with the regional bloc, Min Aung Hlaing will not be invited to the ASEAN-China Special Summit this month.
ASEAN Must Engage With US, China
An ASEAN regional forum in 2019. / ASEAN
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By Kavi Chongkittavorn 19 May 2021
On April 24 at the ASEAN Leaders’ Meeting in Jakarta, the ASEAN chair, Sultan Hassan Bolkiah of Brunei, instructed foreign ministers to hold special meetings with the US and China as soon as possible to further strengthen ASEAN centrality and unity with these most important dialogue partners. It was rather an unusual instruction as ASEAN had already planned to hold post-ministerial meetings with Washington and Beijing in August.
The call by the ASEAN chair manifested the urgency and importance of ASEAN’s engagement with external partners, especially the US and China, at this critical moment. A senior Thai diplomat described the grouping’s action as akin to making a great French croissant the mixture of flour, butter, kneading and then heat and baking time must be perfect leaving nothing to chance.
Thirteen Warnings for Myanmar Junta Chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing
Coup leader Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing during the Armed Forces Day parade in Naypyitaw in March. / Commander-in-Chief of Defense Services’ Office
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By Kavi Chongkittavorn 17 May 2021
Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, when the ASEAN family met on April 24 in Jakarta, you agreed to the five-point consensus. One hundred and six days have elapsed since the Feb. 1 coup and you have not faithfully carried out those commitments, especially the first one the call for an immediate cessation of violence against your own people. Time and patience are running out. If this trend continues unabated, ASEAN will not stay idle. When push comes to shove, ASEAN can be very creative in pushing out a wayward family member.