Thailand calls regional talks on war-torn Myanmar clear but without consensus

Thailand says regional talks held Friday on a stalled peace plan for Myanmar were “clear” but failed to reach agreement on a way forward.

Members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, gathered in Bangkok to discuss a five-point consensus agreed to by the bloc in April 2021, two months after Myanmar’s military seized power from the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi . That coup sparked a civil war that left thousands dead and more than three million displaced.

In addition to an immediate end to violence and negotiations between “all parties” to the conflict, the plan calls for the appointment of a special envoy to meet with all parties and assistance from ASEAN’s humanitarian aid agency.

Myanmar’s junta last year allowed a meeting between Suu Kyi – who has been detained since the coup – and Thailand’s then-foreign minister. Under ASEAN monitoring, some assistance has also come through Thailand. But the faction has not appointed a permanent special envoy, and there have been no meaningful talks between the junta and its enemies as the fighting shows no sign of stopping.

Friday’s talks were followed by a meeting in Bangkok on Thursday on cross-border concerns, including crime, between Myanmar and its immediate neighbours.

After Friday’s meeting, Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Nikornadze Balankura told the press that talks between the foreign ministers of Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Singapore were “cordial and very frank”.

He said that other members of the block sent representatives but not ministers.

Bolbongse Wangphen, director general of Thailand’s ASEAN Affairs Department, said delegates agreed that the peace plan would continue their efforts from 2021.

“The foreign ministers reaffirmed that … the five-point consensus remains the main context for ASEAN’s efforts in addressing the situation in Myanmar,” he said, adding, “All recognize that this will be taken forward There is a need to increase efforts to increase “. “We know there are barriers to progress.”

However, as for any comprehensive agreement on how to deal with those obstacles, Bolabongse said “nothing significant” came out of Friday’s talks, and they would continue at another meeting of the bloc’s foreign ministers next month.

“Today’s meeting was an opportunity for foreign ministers and representatives to express views and explore different approaches to see… how we can converge on some common terms to move forward,” he said. “There is no clear approach yet.”

David Mathieson, an independent Myanmar analyst, told VOA that Thailand is trying to generate momentum in regional efforts after “another lost year of hollow diplomacy.”

He described the meetings between Myanmar’s closest neighbors as “important”, as the junta has lost control of most of the borders. These meetings, he said, are potentially more productive than ASEAN’s, which generally only functions when all members agree.

Like many critics of the bloc, he called the five-point consensus “effectively dead” from the beginning.

“It is fundamentally flawed, relying on engaging [State Administration Council, or SAC]”Who doesn’t want to answer,” he said, using the junta’s formal title. “That’s where all these efforts will fail, giving SAC a reason they don’t have to.”

Surachani Sriyai of Singapore’s ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute agreed that the plan “has never been a viable path out” of the crisis for Myanmar, but would at least allow the bloc to act by consensus on its own norms. While being consistent, there is a glimpse of taking collective action and staying away from each other’s affairs.

After Thursday’s meeting, Thailand said junta officials told the group it was ready for “inclusive political dialogue.” However, junta authorities have branded many of their opponents as “terrorists” and banned dozens of political parties, including Suu Kyi’s ousted National League for Democracy.

Mathieson said any effort to help Myanmar emerge from the crisis needed to include both the junta and all opposition. This means that not only the national unity government including the ousted legislators, but all revolutionary groups are now united against the junta.

Surchani said, whether together or on their own, ASEAN members should develop ties with those opposition groups as they continue to gain ground on the junta, which, according to some estimates, now controls less than half the country. Is.

“Abundance [situational reports] “This points to the SAC losing ground and its ability to govern,” he said. “As such, countries, especially Thailand, must look to other alternative counterparts to do the job.”

After Friday’s meeting, Bolabongse said other ASEAN members are “free to engage with groups that they can have influence on” and that efforts can “complement each other.”

But by focusing their attention on talks with the junta, critics say the bloc and most of its members are legitimizing a regime that many, if not most, in Myanmar consider illegitimate.

Asked to respond to the criticism, Bolbongse said Thailand only engages in state-to-state dialogue.

“Regardless of whether the SAC is recognized as legitimate or not, Myanmar as a whole is still a member of ASEAN, so we are in dialogue with Myanmar,” he said. “That’s all, thanks.”

The junta claims its forces are carrying out a legitimate operation of proportionate force. But many well-documented accounts of the violence describe indiscriminate air and artillery attacks, many of which destroyed churches, schools and clinics. Rights groups have alleged repeated cases of rape, torture and murder. UN-appointed experts and envoys have accused the junta of war crimes and crimes against humanity.