Irrawaddy-Oct

Voicing the frustration of ASEAN members, Malaysia’s foreign minister has warned that the leader of Myanmar’s military regime could be excluded from a regional summit scheduled for later this month over the junta’s failure to cooperate with the regional bloc’s efforts to resolve the country’s crisis. ASEAN member Myanmar has been in social and political turmoil since a military coup in February, which was followed by bloody crackdowns on anti-regime protesters. The international community had pushed for diplomatic efforts by a special envoy appointed by ASEAN. As soon as the regional grouping’s foreign ministers’ meeting ended on Monday, member nations joined in a chorus of disappointment at the foot dragging by Myanmar’s military rulers. By most other accounts, however, the meeting on Monday didn’t go well. After the meeting, Malaysian Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah tweeted that he stated at the meeting that ASEAN members were disappointed as Myanmar authorities have not cooperated with the special envoy and warned that Myanmar could be excluded from this month’s summit if there is no progress. Read more at: https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/myanmar-junta-leader-could-be-excluded-from-asean-summit-malaysian-fm.html