ASEAN Foreign Ministers discuss Myanmar crisis; Resistance wants ‘penalties’ against regime

ASEAN Foreign Ministers discuss Myanmar crisis

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) 2026 Chair the Philippines’ Special Envoy on Burma Ma. Theresa P. Lazaro briefed reporters on Tuesday about the “informal” meeting held with Burma’s regime Foreign Minister Tin Maung Swe in Bangkok, Thailand, on July 12 to assess progress towards the Five Point Consensus, the regional bloc’s peace plan since the crisis after the military coup on Feb. 1, 2021.

Speaking at a press briefing in Manila on Monday, Philippine government spokesperson Dominic Xavier Imperial said that ASEAN hopes for Burma to return to the table at upcoming meetings and summits with the minister and leader of the country representing it. “However, at the moment, of course, you are all aware that ASEAN member states are still finding ways to achieve that,” Imperial added.

Regime leader Min Aung Hlaing agreed to the ASEAN Five Point Consensus in April 2021 but never implemented it upon his return to Burma. Senior regime officials, including Min Aung Hlaing, have been barred from ASEAN high-level summits and meetings since October 2021. In its place, the regime has sent its Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Hau Khan Sum, to Manila July 20-24.

Resistance coalition wants ‘penalties’ against regime

The Steering Council for the Emergence of a Federal Democratic Union (SCEF)—Burma’s premier resistance coalition—has called on ASEAN to execute an “inclusive and results-oriented” diplomatic effort to resolve the country’s multi-layered crisis since the military coup on Feb. 1, 2021.

In a formal message sent to the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Manila on Monday, the coalition urged regional leaders to move beyond rhetoric and impose concrete consequences on the regime in Naypyidaw for its persistent refusal to implement the regional peace plan.

National Unity Government (NUG) Foreign Minister Zin Mar Aung told DVB that the SCEF is explicitly demanding stronger penalties against regime leader Min Aung Hlaing if his new pro-military administration continues to ignore the Five-Point Consensus.