Asean risks credibility if Myanmar junta chief attends summit: Philippine foreign secretary Locsin

Locsin has warned that the bloc will lose its standing as a ‘real regional organisation’ if it allows coup leader to join a virtual summit later this month

Speaking at an online event, he also welcomed the Aukus pact between Australia, Britain, and the US as it ‘strengthens deterrence’ in the region

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Philippine Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jnr. Photo: Reuters

Published: 9:53pm, 14 Oct 2021Updated: 1:12am, 15 Oct 2021

Philippine foreign secretary Teodoro Locsin Jnr on Thursday warned that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) would lose credibility if the leader of the junta in Myanmar was allowed to attend a virtual regional summit this month.

“We can continue keeping [Myanmar] at a distance but … if we relent in any way, our credibility as a real regional organisation disappears,” Locsin said in a Zoom event hosted by the Lowy Institute, an Australian think tank.

His comments came ahead of a meeting on Friday during which Locsin and his fellow Asean foreign ministers will discuss whether to exclude General Min Aung Hlaing from the summit, which will run from October 26 to 28.

Myanmar Erywan Yusof, Asean’s special envoy to Myanmar, last week told Reuters that some members of the bloc had been “deep in discussions” about not inviting the coup leader.

Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia had indicated that they were in favour of excluding Min Aung Hlaing from the summit, but were pushing for a consensus among nine Asean states, Reuters quoted sources as saying on Thursday.

General Min Aung Hlaing, the Myanmar junta chief. Photo: AP

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