Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) member states are working to come up with additional steps or adjustments to measures dealing with Myanmar, which has been ruled by the military since a coup in February 2021, following the junta's execution of four people including two pro-democracy activists late last month.
The executions, conducted the week before a series of Asean-sponsored foreign ministerial meetings in Phnom Penh starting Wednesday, drew swift international condemnation, setting back efforts to restore peace in Myanmar.
Before the four were executed, Cambodia, the rotating chair of Asean this year, called for other member nations to allow Myanmar's foreign minister to attend the meeting, according to a report written by Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn, circulated among the ministers and seen by Kyodo News.
Asean has excluded Myanmar's foreign minister and the chief of its military government from meetings of the regional group since October last year, in a response to the coup that ousted the elected government led by Aung San Suu Kyi and the junta's subsequent violent suppression of pro-democracy protests.
Despite the request by Prak Sokhonn, current special envoy of Asean for Myanmar who visited the country from June 30 to July 2, the annual meeting of foreign ministers was held without Myanmar, according to Cambodia.
"Cambodia as well as all Asean member states are deeply disappointed and disturbed by the execution of those opposition activists despite the appeals from me and others for the death sentence to be reconsidered for the sake of political dialogue, peace and reconciliation," Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said at the opening of the meeting.
Asean will have to take a new approach toward the Myanmar crisis if the military junta continues to execute more opposition activists, he said.
Asean has continued discussions with Myanmar and called for a cessation of violence, adopted as part of a five-point consensus of the group. But amid a lack of progress by the junta in implementing the consensus, which referred primarily to ending violence against the junta's political opponents and civilian protesters, the group may need to change tack in dealing with Myanmar, according to an Asean source who spoke on condition of anonymity.
"Additional measures, or the adjustment of the process (for peace), will be the issue that the Asean foreign ministers will discuss," the source said, without providing details.
There are differences among Asean members regarding Myanmar and it is not clear if the regional group will be able to reach an agreement on the Myanmar issue.
According to the draft of a joint communique to be issued after the meeting, some countries have suggested including that "Asean condemns and was strongly disappointed by the execution" of the four people.
On Tuesday, Asean diplomatic sources told Kyodo News the draft may also state that the executions were "highly reprehensible" and have "created a serious setback and present a gross lack of will to support the efforts, particularly by the Asean chair" to expedite the implementation of the consensus.
However, as Myanmar officials who attended a gathering before the ministerial meeting protested over the strong language, according to the source, the ministers are expected to discuss the wording.
Malaysia is among the members that have taken a critical stance on Myanmar and Malaysian Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah lamented in a tweet Sunday that there had been no real progress on the consensus, saying "the violence continues, and (has) in fact gotten worse," and the junta has been monopolizing and politicizing humanitarian aid from Asean.
Saifuddin, who has met with members of the National Unity Government set up by pro-democracy forces as a shadow Myanmar government, and other factions in the country, said that the Asean foreign ministers should introduce a framework for the junta to implement the five-point consensus.
The consensus on Myanmar was reached by the leaders of Asean, including Myanmar junta chief Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, at a special summit in April 2021. It also included the dispatch of the group's special envoy to meet with all parties concerned.
But Prak Sokhonn, the special envoy, could not meet with Suu Kyi, who has been detained since the coup, and other leaders of the National League for Democracy party she led, during his recent visit to Myanmar.
While Min Aung Hlaing said in a televised speech Monday that some points of the consensus will be implemented this year, it is not known whether the junta will take any action.
The agenda of the Asean foreign ministers meeting will also include the impact of Russia's war on Ukraine, territorial disputes in the South China Sea, the US-China rivalry in the region and North Korea.
The meeting comes as part of a series of talks until Friday and Cambodia has invited Russia, one of Asean's partner nations, to attend some. Asean sources confirmed Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will attend.
A senior Asean official who declined to be identified said its member states have different opinions regarding the situation in Ukraine, with Singapore, which views the war as an invasion by Russia, having imposed sanctions.
However, according to the draft joint communique, Asean members have generally agreed to support US efforts to halt the war and the facilitation of access to humanitarian assistance in Ukraine.
The series of meetings will be held on-site, unlike in the previous two years when they were held virtually or in a hybrid format due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The meetings include the Asean Regional Forum, a 27-member regional security forum also involving China, North Korea, Russia and the United States, and a foreign ministerial session of the East Asia Summit, both of which are set to take place on Friday.
Asean groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
