ASEAN diplomats reaffirm 'peaceful and lasting solution' to end Myanmar civil war

CEBU CITY - Top diplomats from Southeast Asia on Wednesday reaffirmed their commitment to finding a "peaceful and lasting" solution to end Myanmar's civil war.

Philippine Foreign Secretary Theresa Lazaro, who held closed-door informal discussions with her counterparts from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), said they "discussed ways forward" and finding a solution "that is Myanmar-owned and Myanmar-led."

Lazaro, who is leading the talks, called a retreat in Cebu City and reported to her ASEAN counterparts the outcome of her recent visit to Myanmar, where she met military and civilian leaders as the designated ASEAN special envoy.

"Had engaging discussions with my #ASEAN colleagues, as concurrent Chair and Special Envoy of the ASEAN Chair on #Myanmar, during the Extended Informal Consultation on the Implementation of the Five-Point Consensus #5PC," Lazaro said on X.

"We shared views on the implementation of the 5PC, discussed ways forward, and reaffirmed ASEAN's collective resolve in finding a peaceful and lasting solution that is Myanmar-owned and Myanmar-led," she added.

The two-day closed-door ministerial talks are being held a week after Myanmar concluded its third and final round of elections in a monthlong general poll called by the ruling military junta since the army ousted the civilian government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021. The military takeover sparked widespread opposition that led to a civil war.

Myanmar was barred from assuming the ASEAN chairmanship this year as regularly scheduled due to the ruling junta's refusal to implement a peace plan, known as the Five-Point Consensus, agreed on by the bloc’s heads of state to stem the deadly civil strife in the country. 

ASEAN also excludes junta leaders from attending its meeting but allows non-political officials to represent military-ruled Myanmar, which has not been recognized by the grouping but remains as its member.

For this retreat, a senior diplomat with the rank of Permanent Secretary of Foreign Affairs of Myanmar is attending, said Dax Imperial, Philippine foreign affairs department spokesman for ASEAN.

A Southeast Asian diplomat privy to the closed-door talks on Myanmar described the meeting as "good."

"It was all good. All are supportive and cooperative, especially on her (Lazaro's) envoy role," the diplomat told GMA News Online in a chance interview.

Malaysia’s Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan last week said ASEAN would not endorse the election results, adding the bloc's leaders decided in a summit in October not to send observers to Myanmar’s poll, as the country failed to meet conditions for a fair and transparent election.

The Myanmar crisis is among the most contentious issues being faced by the 11-nation bloc, which the Philippines is leading as chair this year after assuming the role a year earlier from the crisis-plagued state. —VBL, GMA Integrated News