28-11-2024 (VIENTIANE) Myanmar’s military government plans to send a senior nonpolitical official to attend the meeting of foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Laos, according to diplomatic sources. The meeting, set to begin on Sunday in Luang Prabang, comes just ahead of the third anniversary of the military coup that overthrew Myanmar’s democratically elected government led by civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi on February 1, 2021.
Myanmar has been boycotting ministerial meetings since October 2021, when ASEAN members decided to allow only a nonpolitical representative from the country to participate. However, this year’s ASEAN chair, Laos, has shown willingness to engage with Myanmar’s military regime.
Initially, the junta had sought to send a higher-ranking official, such as the foreign minister, to the meeting, but this proposal was rejected by other ASEAN members.
While the military regime has been brutally suppressing pro-democracy protesters, the conflict between the regime and ethnic groups in Myanmar has been escalating since October.
