ASEAN chair Philippines hosts Myanmar ‘stakeholder meeting’ to push stalled peace bid

MANILA – The Philippines, the current chair of ASEAN, this week hosted a meeting of “important political groups” from army-ruled Myanmar, officials said on Jan 22, in an effort to advance the regional bloc’s long-stalled peace plan.

Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Theresa Lazaro, who took over in 2026 as the ASEAN special envoy for the crisis in Myanmar, said discussions at the “stakeholders’ meeting” in Tagaytay included talk of de-escalation, facilitating aid delivery and fostering political dialogue.

“I encouraged their active, constructive and meaningful sharing of perspectives on the implementation of the ASEAN Five-Point Consensus,” Ms Lazaro said of the meeting on X, referring to the peace plan agreed between the Association of South-east Asian Nations and Myanmar in 2021. 

Ms Lazaro’s meeting follows her trip to Myanmar earlier in January, when she met ruling general Min Aung Hlaing and had what Manila said was a “warm and constructive exchange of views”.

Ravaged by conflict

Mr Dominic Xavier Imperial, a Philippine Foreign Ministry official, on Jan 22 confirmed the military government was not represented at this week’s meeting and declined to name the attendees at their request.

“Important political groups were represented,” he said in a text message to Reuters.

Myanmar has been ravaged by conflict since a 2021 coup triggered a protest movement, which was brutally suppressed by the military. The situation has evolved into a civil war between the military and a loose alliance of rebel groups.

Aside from some improvements in humanitarian access, ASEAN’s peace plan has made little progress, with fighting ongoing in swathes of the country. Malaysia, the ASEAN chair in 2025, had expressed optimism that its efforts to engage different sides in the conflict could bear fruit.

Myanmar – a resource-rich former British colony, which has been governed by the military for most of the past six decades – is facing one of the most serious humanitarian crises in Asia. Thousands have been killed in post-coup conflict and, according to the United Nations, 3.6 million people were displaced.

A spokesperson for Myanmar’s military government did not answer calls seeking comment. Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government, which is allied with rebel groups, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.  

Military-dominated election

Myanmar is holding a phased general election, with two of three voting rounds already completed and official results so far showing a party allied with the military winning the majority of seats. A third round is scheduled to take place on Jan 25.

Though turnout has been low, the junta has said the election will bring political stability, describing it as “a victory for the people”.

ASEAN has not sent observers

to monitor the election. Critics and some Western governments have called the vote a one-sided sham to perpetuate army rule through civilian proxies.

The Chin National Front, an ethnic minority rebel group that holds territory near Myanmar’s northern border with India, confirmed to Reuters that it had attended the two-day meeting this week and praised envoy Ms Lazaro for making early headway in talking to all sides. REUTERS