Malaysia PM Says Will Do Utmost to Fully Reintegrate Myanmar into ASEAN Community as Min Aung Hlaing Faces Red-Carpet Criticism

Malaysian PM says will do utmost to help Myanmar fully rejoin ASEAN community, as criticism mounts over red-carpet welcome for Min Aung Hlaing

October 8

Malaysia will continue to do "as much as it can" to help Myanmar fully rejoin the ASEAN community, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said today, October 8.

The statement came as democracy activists criticized the Malaysian Prime Minister's red-carpet welcome for coup leader Min Aung Hlaing, saying it could amount to political recognition.

The Malaysian Prime Minister said that while he accepts that concerns about democracy in Myanmar persist, there is a need for mutual respect for differences.

He also said that since Min Aung Hlaing has shown a desire to cooperate, cooperation between the two countries will continue to be promoted.

The Malaysian Prime Minister said Malaysia will do as much as possible to promote this cooperation and, without bias, especially within the ASEAN framework, to bring Myanmar back into the international community.

In addition, the Malaysian Prime Minister said during the press conference that he thanked coup leader Min Aung Hlaing for Malaysia's repatriation of 10,493 Myanmar nationals.

He also said that Malaysia will no longer be able to continue accepting refugees from Myanmar due to financial burdens and security concerns.

Malaysia already repatriated around 1,500 refugees to Myanmar last month aboard the coup military's naval vessels as part of a plan to send back up to 5,000 Myanmar refugees.

Regarding Malaysia's plan to repatriate Myanmar refugees, the United Nations (UN) and human rights organizations have pointed out that due to the current civil war situation in Myanmar and forced conscription, Myanmar nationals facing repatriation could encounter security risks.

After the coup, because of the failure to comply with the five-point ASEAN consensus, Min Aung Hlaing and senior officials have been restricted from attending ASEAN summits as political-level representatives, but some ASEAN member states, including Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, have been attempting to re-expand relations with the coup's Myanmar military leaders.

Ref & Photo: Reuters

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