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☆ ASEAN Foreign Ministers Back 'Myanmar-Owned and Led' Solution to Crisis
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-29 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: 1 min

(Reuters) - Southeast Asian foreign ministers on Monday pressed for an end to Myanmar's bloody crisis and expressed unity in their backing for an ASEAN peace plan and a "Myanmar-owned and led solution" to the conflict. The ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) were attending a retreat in Luang Prabang in Laos, which is chair this year of the 10-member bloc. In a statement, they also called for a cessation of hostilities in Myanmar to allow delivery of humanitarian aid, and concerning the South China Sea, urged a conducive environment for the furthering of talks towards a code of conduct between ASEAN and China. (Reporting by Martin Petty, editing by Ed Osmond)

Persons: Martin Petty, Ed Osmond Organizations: Reuters, ASEAN, Association of Southeast Asian Nations Locations: Myanmar, Luang Prabang, Laos, China

BAY ISMOYO/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Sept 29 (Reuters) - Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said on Friday there was a "climate of violence" and an "atmosphere of intimidation" against Indian diplomats in Canada, where the presence of Sikh separatist groups has frustrated New Delhi. "Because there is freedom of speech, to make threats and intimidate diplomats, I don't think that's acceptable," Jaishankar told reporters on Friday evening in Washington. Canada is home to an influential Sikh community, and Indian leaders say some fringe groups there remain sympathetic to the cause of an independent Sikh state. The insurgency killed tens of thousands of people and the Khalistan movement is considered a security threat by the Indian government. Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated in 1984 by two Sikh bodyguards after she allowed the storming of the holiest Sikh temple, aimed at flushing out Sikh separatists.

Persons: Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Jaishankar, Justin Trudeau, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, Trudeau, Indira Gandhi, Kanishka Singh, Leslie Adler Organizations: India's, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, India, ASEAN Foreign Ministers, Rights, Indian, Washington . Relations, Canadian, Air, Air India Boeing, Thomson Locations: Jakarta, Canada, New Delhi, Washington, India, Punjab, Air India

☆ India told Canada it is open to looking into specific information on Sikh separatist killing -Jaishankar
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

India's Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar looks on as he delivers his speech in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Post Ministerial Conference with India during the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' meeting in Jakarta, on July 13, 2023, where Myanmar's seat was left empty. BAY ISMOYO/Pool via REUTERS REFILE - QUALITY REPEAT Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Sept 26 (Reuters) - India's foreign minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, said on Tuesday that India has told Canada it was open to looking into any specific information it provides on the killing of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Speaking at a Council on Foreign Relations event, Jaishankar said India had told Canada, "This is not the government of India's policy," after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said last week that Canada was pursuing "credible allegations" that Indian government agents may be linked to the killing. Reporting by Simon Lewis and David Brunnstrom; Editing by Leslie AdlerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Hardeep Singh, Jaishankar, Justin Trudeau, Simon Lewis, David Brunnstrom, Leslie Adler Organizations: India's, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, India, ASEAN Foreign Ministers, REUTERS, Rights, Foreign Relations, Canada, Canadian, Thomson Locations: Jakarta, India, Canada

☆ Xi, Putin missing G20 summit not unusual, India's foreign minister says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

India's Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, delivers his speech in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Post Ministerial Conference with India during the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' meeting in Jakarta, on July 13, 2023, where Myanmar's seat was left empty. BAY ISMOYO/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNEW DELHI, Sept 6 (Reuters) - China's President Xi Jinping and Russia's Vladimir Putin skipping this week's G20 summit in New Delhi is not unusual and has nothing to do with India, Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar told the ANI news agency. Sherpas of the G20 countries are negotiating to build a consensus and arrive at a declaration at the Sept. 9-10 summit in New Delhi, Jaishankar said in the interview, which was aired on Wednesday. Asked if their absence would affect building a consensus and producing a declaration at the end of the summit, Jaishankar said: "We are negotiating right now...the clock did not start ticking yesterday." Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has said he hopes to discuss digital issues and food security.

Persons: Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Xi Jinping, Russia's Vladimir Putin, Jaishankar, Putin, Xi, Joe Biden, Fumio Kishida, YP Rajesh, Jacqueline Wong, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: India's, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, India, ASEAN Foreign Ministers, Indian, Reuters, World Bank, YP, Thomson Locations: Jakarta, DELHI, New Delhi, India, Ukraine

☆ China tells Russia it will uphold 'impartial' position on Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Russian Foreign Ministry/Handout via REUTERS/File PhotoBEIJING, Aug 7 (Reuters) - China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in a phone conversation on Monday that China would uphold an independent and impartial position on Ukraine as it strives to find a political settlement to the issue. The statement came after the ministry said earlier on Monday that international talks in Saudi Arabia at the weekend on finding a peaceful resolution to the Ukraine crisis had helped "to consolidate international consensus". More than 40 countries, including China, India, the United States and European countries, but not Russia, took part in the Jeddah talks that ended on Sunday. Beijing has refused to condemn Moscow for the invasion of Ukraine it launched in February 2022. It has offered its own peace plan, which received a lukewarm response in both Russia and Ukraine, while the United States and NATO were sceptical.

Persons: Sergei Lavrov, Central Foreign Affairs Commission Wang Yi, Wang Yi, Lavrov, Li Hui, Farah Master, Andrew Cawthorne, Alex Richardson Organizations: Russia's, Central Foreign Affairs Commission, ASEAN Foreign, Russian Foreign Ministry, REUTERS, China's, Eurasian Affairs, NATO, Beijing, Thomson Locations: Jakarta, Indonesia, BEIJING, China, Ukraine, Saudi Arabia, India, United States, Russia, Jeddah, Beijing, Moscow

CNN —US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is due to meet with top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi on Thursday – the latest in a series of increased high-level interactions between Washington and Beijing. Their meeting on the sidelines of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Jakarta comes less than a month after the two met in Beijing, holding what the top US diplomat called a “candid and constructive” conversation. The Biden administration feels that the US and China are “getting back to normal in the sense of pace of diplomacy,” a senior administration official told CNN this week. Both Blinken and Yellen claimed they had made some progress in efforts to re-establish bilateral communications aimed at responsibly managing the relationship. But right now that is “not being actively considered,” the senior administration official said.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Wang Yi, Qin Gang, Biden, ”, Janet Yellen, John Kerry, Yellen, ” Blinken, “ We’re, –, ” Yellen, they’ve, Blinken’s, Matthew Miller, Miller Organizations: CNN, Chinese Communist Party, China’s, Qin, Reuters, ASEAN, Microsoft, State Department Locations: Washington, Beijing, Jakarta, United States, China, Fiji, Mexico

[1/5] Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi delivers her opening remarks during a retreat session of the 56th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Minister's Meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, July 12, 2023. REUTERS/Ajeng Dinar Ulfiana/PoolJAKARTA, July 12 (Reuters) - ASEAN foreign ministers on Wednesday called for regional unity in addressing an intensifying conflict in Myanmar, amid doubts over the bloc's capability to implement a two-year-old peace process that has yet to get off the ground. Retno's remarks come after a Thai-led meeting last month attended by Myanmar's military leaders who have been barred from high-level ASEAN meetings. Most ASEAN members shunned that meeting, which Thai Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai defended, saying Thailand was suffering in terms of its border, trade and refugee problems. Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi on Wednesday said the agreed peace plan should remain ASEAN's focus.

Persons: Retno Marsudi, Don Pramudwinai, Don, Aung San, Aung San Suu Kyi, Suu Kyi, Rizal Sukma, Sukma, Kanupriya Kapoor, Martin Petty, Michael Perry Organizations: Indonesian, 56th Association of Southeast Asian Nations, REUTERS, ASEAN, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Indonesia's, United Nations, Thai Foreign, Centre, Strategic, International Studies, Friday's East Asia Summit, ASEAN Regional, Thomson Locations: Jakarta, Indonesia, JAKARTA, Myanmar, ASEAN, Thai, Thailand, Aung San Suu, China, Philippines, Vietnam, South China, Friday's, United States, Russia

☆ ASEAN chair Indonesia has little to show for Myanmar peace drive, diplomats say
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Kate Lamb | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

JAKARTA, July 12 (Reuters) - Indonesia, working on behalf of southeast Asian nations, has little to show so far for its intense behind-the-scenes efforts to bridge gaps between factions in Myanmar's conflict, diplomatic sources say. Myanmar has been racked by violence since 2021, when the military seized power from a largely elected government and unleashed a deadly crackdown on opponents. But the junta, an opposition "shadow government" and rebel militias all refuse to compromise on their respective conditions to start even informal talks, said three sources, including two diplomats, familiar with the matter. Sasa said he could not confirm if the Bali meetings had taken place, but called for even deeper engagement with ASEAN. The sources said Indonesia had drawn inspiration from its "cocktail diplomacy" of the late 1980s, when it convinced Cambodia's four opposing factions to meet for informal talks near Jakarta.

Persons: Sasa, Bali, Cambodia's, Lina Alexandra, Retno Marsudi, Kanupriya Kapoor, Kevin Liffey Organizations: Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, National Unity Government, Centre, Strategic, International Studies, Indonesian, Thomson Locations: JAKARTA, Indonesia, Myanmar, Indonesia's, Bali, Jakarta

☆ Thais host Myanmar junta official for talks; key ASEAN members stay away
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Myanmar's junta-appointed foreign minister, Than Swe, is due to join the talks, two sources with knowledge of the meeting told Reuters. But some ASEAN members have declined to attend and others are only sending junior officials. ASEAN FRUSTRATIONThe military took over in Myanmar in 1962, isolating it for decades until a tentative opening up began in 2011. Malaysia's foreign minister has also declined to attend the Thai talks, saying it remained supportive of the efforts being undertaken by Indonesia. Cambodia on Monday said Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn, who last year served as an ASEAN special envoy to Myanmar, would be represented by his deputy.

Persons: Aung, Athit, Don Pramudwinai, Don, Retno Marsudi, Suu Kyi, Prak Sokhonn, Panu, Ananda, Kanupriya Kapoor, Kay Johnson, Robert Birsel Organizations: Protesters, Embassy, REUTERS, Monday, Association of Southeast Nations, ASEAN, Myanmar's, Reuters, Thai PBS, Indonesian, Peace, Myanmar, ASEAN Chair, Malaysian, Cambodian, Thomson Locations: Myanmar, Bangkok, Thailand, BANGKOK, ASEAN, Indonesia, Suu, Cambodia, Ananda Teresia, Jakarta, Rozanna, Kuala Lumpur

Two sources with knowledge of Sunday's meeting told Reuters that Myanmar's junta-appointed foreign minister had been invited. Myanmar's military spokesman did not respond to phone calls on Friday night. ASEAN chair Indonesia has declined to attend the proposed meeting, according to three sources. Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director of Human Rights Watch, said the Thai foreign minister had shown "arrogance" by inviting his junta counterpart who other regional neighbours have shunned. Indonesia last month cited progress in its own behind-the-scenes efforts to engage multiple parties in Myanmar's conflict in a bid to advance a peace process agreed by ASEAN leaders and Myanmar's military in April 2021.

Persons: Don Pramudwinai, Nobel, Aung, hasn't, Myanmar's, Prayuth Chan, ocha, Don's, Don, Phil Robertson, Ananda Teresia, Devjyot Ghoshal, Kay Johnson, Stanley Widianto, Martin Petty, Devjyot, Angus MacSwan Organizations: ASEAN, of Southeast Asian Nations, Thailand's Foreign, Reuters, Myanmar's, Foreign Ministry, Human Rights, Party, United Nations, Thomson Locations: Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia, Thailand BANGKOK, Suu, Jakarta, Asia, Bangkok, Shoon

[1/3] Cambodia's Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn speaks during a meeting with Southeast Asian foreign ministers at the secretariat of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Jakarta, Indonesia, October 27, 2022. Galih Pradipta/Pool via REUTERSJAKARTA, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Myanmar's military government warned on Thursday that any pressure from its Southeast Asian neighbours to put a time frame on a peace plan would create "negative implications". No Myanmar representatives were present at the special meeting of the group's foreign ministers to discuss the stalled peace plan. Late on Thursday, Myanmar's military-appointed foreign ministry released a statement blaming armed resistance movements for violence and saying pressure to set a time frame will create more negative implications than positive ones. And Indonesia has mentioned that this request needs to be delivered to Tatmadaw (Myanmar's military) immediately," said Retno.

☆ ASEAN chair alarmed over escalating Myanmar violence
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Oct 26 (Reuters) - The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is gravely concerned about an escalation of violence in Myanmar and is calling for restraint and an immediate cessation of fighting, the bloc's chair Cambodia said. "We are deeply saddened by the growing casualties, and the immense suffering that ordinary people in Myanmar have endured," said the statement. "We, therefore, strongly urge utmost restraint and immediate cessation to violence," said the statement, which called for all parties to pursue dialogue. ASEAN is leading diplomatic efforts to bring peace to Myanmar but the junta has done little to implement the "consensus", which committed to an immediate halt to violence and the start of dialogue towards a peace agreement. A group of 457 Myanmar civil society organisations have called in an open letter for ASEAN leaders to scrap the peace plan it agreed with the military and instead work with civilian leaders and a shadow government.

☆ China foreign minister calls Pelosi's Taiwan visit 'manic', 'irrational'
▼ + stars: | 2022-08-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BEIJING, Aug 4 (Reuters) - China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Thursday called U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan a "manic, irresponsible and highly irrational" action by the United States, state broadcaster CCTV reported. Wang, speaking at the ASEAN Foreign Ministers meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, said China has made the utmost diplomatic effort to avert crisis, but will never allow its core interests to be hurt. China's current and future measures are necessary and timely defensive countermeasures, carefully considered and evaluated, aimed at safeguarding national sovereignty and security, in line with international and domestic law, CCTV cited Wang as saying. Reporting by Beijing Newsroom; Writing by Martin Quin Pollard; Editing by Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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