Malaysia wants Myanmar ceasefire extended amid ASEAN ban on coup leaders

Al Jazeera:

Malaysia has urged for the extension and expansion of a post-earthquake ceasefire in Myanmar due to run out by the end of May, as ongoing fighting calls into question its effectiveness.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan issued the call in a meeting with fellow Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday, a day before the leaders’ summit.

The regional bloc has so far led fruitless diplomatic efforts to end Myanmar’s conflict since the military staged a coup and deposed civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021.

Myanmar’s failure to implement a five-point peace deal reached in April 2021 has led ASEAN to exclude the coup leaders from attending its annual meeting.

“We call on the stakeholders in Myanmar to cease hostilities, and to extend and expand the ceasefire, to facilitate the long and difficult path towards recovery, and ease the suffering of the people of Myanmar,” Mohamad said in his opening remarks.