ASEAN backs building of centre to help Myanmar war victims in Thai border
ASEAN foreign ministers agreed on Monday to have a centre built on the Myanmar-Thailand border to send humanitarian aid to people affected by the ongoing war in the neighbouring country.
The ministers were in Luang Prabang in Laos to participate in the two-day ASEAN Foreign Ministers (AMM) Retreat, which wrapped up on Monday.
Thai Foreign Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara said the initiative was proposed by Thailand and his ASEAN counterparts agreed to go ahead with it.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Parnpree said he would travel to Tak’s Mae Sot district on February 8 and 9 to find a suitable location for the centre. He added that the ministers had also agreed to build an ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Centre) to monitor operations at the humanitarian aid centre.
The Thai and Myanmar Red Cross operations will also help at the centre, Parnpree added.
He said the AMM Retreat had re-affirmed the implementation of the ASEAN Five-Point Consensus, which is a peace plan the grouping came up with for Myanmar. It was endorsed by all member states, including Myanmar’s military junta in April 2021.
The consensus includes points like ending violence, providing humanitarian assistance, engaging in dialogue and appointing a special envoy. However, critics argue that the agreement has been ineffective, with the junta showing little progress in implementation.
The Thai foreign minister reckons the operations will start in late February.
Other than the humanitarian aid centre, the ASEAN ministers also covered other areas of cooperation among member states, including efforts to integrate their digital economic cooperation and efforts to preserve the environment.
The ministers also discussed the global situation and issues related to call-centre gangs, Parnpree said.
Separately, Vice Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow said the AMM Retreat also agreed with the Singapore foreign minister’s proposal to issue a joint statement calling for the unconditional release of hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
