Asean re‑engagement with Myanmar difficult, says Thai minister
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) will find it difficult to re-engage with Myanmar even after its upcoming election, Thailand’s Foreign Affairs Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeo said on Tuesday evening, calling for the release of the country’s detained former leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Myanmar is scheduled to hold a multi-phase general election starting on Dec 28, 2025, amid a raging civil war, an exercise that critics have derided as a sham to extend the control of the ruling military that took power in a 2021 coup.
Many pro-democracy parties have either been banned or are refusing to take part in the polls, which junta leader Min Aung Hlaing has acknowledged will not be held nationwide.
Myanmar’s junta chief Snr Gen Min Aung Hlaing, who ousted the elected government in a coup on Feb 1, presides over an army parade on Armed Forces Day in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, March 27, 2021. (Photo: Reuters)
“I think under the present circumstances and the fact that the elections will be held when they haven’t had the needed inclusive dialogue yet, it will be difficult for us to re-engage with Myanmar,” Mr Sihasak said at an event at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand (FCCT).
“I hope that we can maintain unity in this position.”
“We want it to be free and credible, but it’s not going to be the case, we know that,” Mr Sihasak said.
“My feeling is that we won’t be in a position to recognise the elections.”
But he suggested it could be a stepping stone towards reform, saying that Gen Thein Sein was elected president in an “imperfect” poll in 2010 and went on to release Aung San Suu Kyi, with the National League for Democracy (NLD) winning the next poll.
“Maybe an imperfect election can also be a good opportunity to return the country back to stability and democracy,” he told reporters in Bangkok.
Neighbouring Thailand hosts millions of people who have fled the conflict in Myanmar or left the country to seek work outside its moribund economy.
A career diplomat and former ambassador to France, Mr Sihasak urged the Myanmar authorities to free Suu Kyi on humanitarian grounds.
“It’s time to release her,” he said. “Sometimes we must say things that are the right thing to say.
“She’s been in custody for too long. At her age, we don’t know the condition of her health, and so I hope that they do that the first thing, or immediately.”
The first phase of voting in Myanmar begins on Dec 28, with a second slated for Jan 11, but subsequent rounds and a result date have not been announced.
Foreign ministers of the 11-member Southeast Asian regional bloc last month pushed the junta for a fair and inclusive election, asking it to adhere to the bloc’s four-year-old peace plan.
Thailand’s Foreign Affairs Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeo. (Photo: Chanat Katanyu)
Myanmar has been in political turmoil since the 2021 coup, when the military ousted a civilian government led by Nobel laureate Suu Kyi, sparking a nationwide armed resistance.
Suu Kyi has been in detention since, and the 80-year-old political icon is suffering from worsening heart problems and needs urgent medical attention, according to her son.
Source – Bangkok News
