The ASEAN Summit begins without Myanmar, as Thailand pushes for the country's reopening.

[ASEAN NOW]

Myanmar's military declined to send a representative, so leaders from Southeast Asian countries began their annual summit without him.

 

 

Following his junta's failure to fulfill a peace plan agreed upon with ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) made the unusual and exceptional decision to exclude Myanmar's military head Min Aung Hlaing from its summit.

According to The Associated Press, this year's summit Chair, Brunei, invited Myanmar's highest-ranking veteran diplomat, Chan Aye, to attend as a non-political envoy, but she declined.

 

Other world leaders, including US President Joe Biden and leaders from China and Russia, will join the three-day talks, which will be held via remote conferencing software.

 

The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has dominated summit deliberations, with leaders also discussing improved regional connectivity and collaboration among dialogue partners, as well as other regional and international topics of concern.

 

Thailand Demands Reopening in Southeast Asia

According to the Bangkok Post, Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha asked other ASEAN members to follow Thailand's lead in reopening their countries in order to restore the region's economies and ensure meaningful execution of the bloc's response to Covid-19.

 

According to him, the bloc must work to mitigate the pandemic's consequences while also learning from it in order to be more robust in the future.

 

"In order to recover its economies, ASEAN should begin reopening and enabling safe travel," he said, adding that the ASEAN Travel Corridor Arrangement Framework should be implemented, with mutual acceptance of vaccines and immunization certificates to ease business travel and, subsequently, tourism.

 

Laos Requests More Cooperation

 

According to the Vientiane Times, Laos' Prime Minister, Dr. Phakham Viphavanh, addressed the conference, expressing heartfelt gratitude to ASEAN member countries for the essential aid and support provided to Laos in coping with the Covid-19 outbreak.

 

He urged member countries to work together even more in the battle against the pandemic, emphasizing the importance of ASEAN centrality, consensus, and solidarity while dealing with outsiders.

 

Credit Source: The Laotian Times

 

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