Thai PM Meets Myanmar Junta Leader

Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra / PHOTO via Instagram @ingshin21

JAKARTA - Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra met with the leader of the Myanmar junta on the sidelines of a regional summit in China.

Myanmar's ruling military is battling the uprising that came after they seized power through a coup in 2021 and largely ignored calls from neighboring Southeast Asian countries to stop hostilities and have dialogue with their opponents.

"We had private conversations and nothing unexpected," said Paetongtarn of his meeting with Min Aung Hlaing during an interview with Thai journalists.

"I offer our good intentions to foster peace," he continued.

The two countries share 2,000 km of borders and fighting in Myanmar sometimes extends to Thailand and disrupts border trade.

Paetongtarn at a summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Laos last month called for increased engagement with Myanmar, stressing there is no military solution and it is time to start talking.

Paetongtarn also hinted at Thailand's support for next year's proposed junta election, a plan that ASEAN has so far reluctant to mention in its official statement.

The election, which was banned or rejected by opposition groups, has been widely seen as a false election and cannot be recognized by the governments of Western countries.

On Thursday, Paetongtarn said Myanmar's conflict was an internal matter that had to be handled, according to Thai media.

The two leaders attended the summit of Mekong Besar Subkawasan and the Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong (ACMECS) Economic Cooperation Strategy in Kunming.

Min Aung Hlaing was barred from attending the ASEAN summit due to zero progress in ASEAN-led peace plans and few overseas visits, mainly to Russia, Myanmar military supporters and its main suppliers of weapons.

His visit to an influential neighboring country, China, became the first since the 2021 coup.

He met Chinese Prime Minister Li Quiang on Wednesday and also held talks with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet.