Conflict in Burma, also known as Myanmar, is getting worse and has urged its leaders to take a different path as violence in the country escalates, Foreign Minister Penny Wong says.
The senator has issued a direct plea to the nation’s military rulers on the sidelines of an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) regional gathering in Laos.
Conflict has raged in Burma, a country of more than 50 million people, since the military seized control from Aung San Suu Kyi’s government in 2021.
Senator Wong said the situation was deeply concerning and worsening, with the economy on a “very difficult track” while deaths, violence, and pain was caused by the conflict evident.
“This is not sustainable, we see the increase in illegal narcotics, we see the the economic trajectory, as I said, very poor for the people and we see the security situation declining,” she told reporters in Vientiane on Saturday.
“My message from Australia to the regime is that it is not sustainable for you or for your people, and we would urge them to take a different path.”
The conflict pits Burma’s well-equipped military against a loose alliance of ethnic minority rebel groups and an armed resistance movement that has been gaining ground and testing the junta’s ability to govern.
An estimated 2.6 million people have been displaced by fighting.
The junta has been condemned for excessive force in its air strikes on civilian areas and accused of atrocities, which it has dismissed as Western disinformation. Laotia
Senator Wong said Australia backed ASEAN to find a pathway to stability in the country, which includes a “five-point consensus” for peace.
Tensions in the South China Sea have also dominated discussions at three days of high-level talks in then capital, with the foreign minister hitting out at “very disturbing incidents” involving the disputed territory Second Thomas Shoal.
“We continue to support international law, what we would say is we are very concerned about any actions which are destabilising,” she said.
Earlier this week China and the Philippines reached a deal they hope will halt confrontations at sea.
Diplomats from Australia, the United States, China, Russia, Japan and India have also met with allies and held dialogues at the summit.
ASEAN member Indonesia highlighted efforts by both China and the U.S. to grow their influence in the region, at the event.
China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi met Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov and is also expected to meet with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Mr. Blinken is expected to reiterate calls for following international law in the South China Sea, according to a statement, which Senator Wong has also done.
