Southeast Asian leaders hold their annual summit this week without Myanmar, whose armed forces seized power in a coup in February.
Myanmar defiantly protested the exclusion of its ruler, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, from the summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Brunei, which currently chairs the 10-nation bloc, will host the three-day meetings starting Tuesday, albeit on video due to coronavirus concerns. The discussions will be joined by US President Joe Biden and the leaders of China and Russia, and the issues are expected to include the Myanmar crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as economic and security issues.
The unprecedented sanction imposed by ASEAN on Myanmar departs from its fundamental principles of non-interference in the internal affairs of its members and decision-making by consensus. Myanmar accused ASEAN of violating those principles by excluding its leader from the summit.
The regional group has very few alternative options as the general’s intransigence could lead him to be considered a diplomatic haven for tyrants.
The ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) is made up of Brunei, the Philippines, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
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