Philippines ready to replace Myanmar as Asean chair in 2026
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Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr did not say why Manila was taking over the chair from Myanmar.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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JAKARTA - The Philippines is ready to chair Asean in 2026 instead of Myanmar, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said on Tuesday, as the bloc wrestles with how to engage with Myanmar’s junta rulers.
Myanmar has been ravaged by deadly violence since a 2021 military coup deposed Ms Aung San Suu Kyi’s government and unleashed a bloody crackdown on dissent.
“It is my pleasure to announce that the Philippines is ready to take the helm and chair Asean in 2026,” Mr Marcos told Asean leaders in Jakarta. “We will fortify the foundations of our community-building and navigate Asean as it embarks on a new chapter,” he said, according to a statement from the presidential palace.
Junta spokesman Zaw Min Tun confirmed it would be replaced as chair. “Myanmar will skip Asean chairmanship in 2026,” he told AFP, without giving further details.
Mr Marcos did not say why the Philippines was taking over the chair from Myanmar.
However, two diplomats attending the summit said the move was agreed on by leaders of the bloc so that the crisis would not hijack Asean’s agenda and prevent “external partners” from going to Myanmar for gatherings.
“It has been decided. It was announced at the leaders’ meeting, and there was no objection,” said one diplomat on the condition of anonymity.
Asean wrote to the Philippines to ask if it was willing to accept the chair for 2026, and Manila accepted, the diplomat said.
A second diplomat, who also declined to be identified, said the switch had been decided on after “leaders’ assessment on the progress” of a five-point plan from two years ago that the junta in Myanmar has largely ignored.
Laos will host the 2024 summit, and Malaysia will chair the event in 2025. AFP
