NIKKEI Asia reports that during the meeting of ASEAN Defense Ministers held today in Luang Prabang, Laos, the issue of humanitarian assistance to Myanmar was discussed.
Lao Defense Minister Chansamone Chanyalath said in the opening remarks of the meeting that they are facing geopolitical conflicts and today is an opportunity for ASEAN to discuss together how to solve these problems.
Nikkei Asia also reported that a representative of the Thai government who attended the meeting told reporters before the meeting that humanitarian aid and natural disaster relief will continue.
He said that the Military Council also sent some representatives to the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting hosted by Laos, which holds the rotating chairmanship of ASEAN.
For the first time in more than two years, some representatives from the Military Council were sent to the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting held in January.
Since October 2021, ASEAN has banned top officials, including military leader General Min Aung Hlaing, from attending high-level meetings in response to the military coup.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA) also announced on March 3 that more than 18 and a half million people in Myanmar are in need of emergency humanitarian aid.