Southeast Asia top diplomats condemn Myanmar violence, urge peaceful means to settle sea disputes

VIENTIANE, Laos (AP) — Southeast Asian top diplomats on Saturday condemned violence in Myanmar's ongoing civil war and urged for “practical” means to defuse rising tensions in the South China Sea during the last of the three-day regional talks with allies including the U.S., Russia and China.

Foreign Minister Saleumxay Kommasith of Laos, which currently chairs the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), hailed dialogue partners for “frank, candid and constructive exchanges” on key issues revolving around regional security.

The weekend talks in the Laotian capital were dominated by the increasingly violent and destabilizing civil war in ASEAN-member Myanmar as well as maritime disputes of some of the bloc members with China, which have led to direct confrontations that many worry could lead to broader conflict.

In a joint statement issued at the end of the talks, the bloc said there’s an urgent need to address the humanitarian crisis in Myanmar, and called for “all relevant parties in Myanmar to ensure the safe and transparent delivery of humanitarian assistance, to the people in Myanmar without discrimination.”

“We strongly condemned the continued acts of violence against civilians and public facilities and called for immediate cessation, and urged all parties involved to take concrete action to immediately halt indiscriminate violence,” it said.

The army in Myanmar ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021 and suppressed widespread nonviolent protests that sought a return to democratic rule, leading to increasing violence and a humanitarian crisis.

Thailand, which shares long borders with Myanmar, said it was given ASEAN backing to play a wider role there, including in providing humanitarian assistance in which it’s already heavily involved. It also said more peace talks have been proposed to include additional stakeholders, especially Myanmar’s neighbors Thailand, China and India.

More than 5,400 people have been killed in the fighting in Myanmar and the military government has arrested more than 27,000 since the coup, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. There are now more than 3 million displaced people in the country, with the numbers growing daily as fighting intensifies between the military and Myanmar’s multiple ethnic militias as well as the so-called people’s defense forces of military opponents.

ASEAN has been pushing a “five-point consensus” for peace, but the military leadership in Myanmar has so far ignored the plan, raising questions about the bloc’s efficiency and credibility. The peace plan calls for the immediate cessation of violence in Myanmar, a dialogue among all concerned parties, mediation by an ASEAN special envoy, provision of humanitarian aid through ASEAN channels, and a visit to Myanmar by the special envoy to meet all concerned parties.

The meetings also served to highlight rivalries in the region as the U.S. and China look to expand their influence there. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Vientiane on Saturday after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held direct talks with Wang on Thursday. Washington’s two biggest rivals, Moscow and Beijing, which have grown closer over the past two years, prompting deep concerns about their combined global influence.

Regarding tensions in the South China Sea, ASEAN said it maintains its position on the freedom of navigation over the sea and urged a full implementation of a South China Sea code of conduct, which the bloc has been working on with China for some time.

ASEAN members Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei all have conflicts with China over its claim of sovereignty over virtually all of the South China Sea, one of the world’s most crucial waterways for shipping. Indonesia has also expressed concern about what it sees as Beijing’s encroachment on its exclusive economic zone.

ASEAN foreign ministers also welcomed “practical measures that could reduce tensions and the risk of accidents, misunderstandings, and miscalculation,” in an apparent reference to a rare deal between the Philippines and China that aims to end their confrontations, establish a mutually acceptable arrangement for the disputed area without conceding each other’s territorial claims.

Prior to the deal, tensions between the Philippines and China escalated for months, with China’s coast guard and other forces using powerful water cannons and dangerous blocking maneuvers to prevent food and other supplies from reaching Filipino navy personnel.

On Saturday, the Philippines said it was able to make a supply trip to the disputed area without having to confront Beijing’s forces, the first such trip since the deal was reached a week ago. Blinken applauded it as a success in his opening remarks at the meeting with ASEAN foreign ministers, while calling China’s past actions against the Philippines — a U.S. treaty partner — “escalatory and unlawful.”

The United States and its allies have regularly conducted military exercises and patrols in the area to assert their “free and open Indo-Pacific” policy — including the right to navigate in international waters — which has drawn criticism from China.

Wang said in his meeting with Philippines Secretary of Foreign Affairs Enrique Manalo on Friday that the deployment of a U.S. intermediate-range missile system in the Philippines would create regional tension and trigger an arms race, according to a statement from the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

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Associated Press journalist Ken Moritsugu in Beijing contributed to this report.