00:00Malaysia's Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hassan will visit Myanmar on Thursday for talks with the country's military junta,
00:09urging progress on ASEAN's stalled peace plan and discussing the nation's upcoming election.
00:16The one-day visit to Nebitao comes as Malaysia chairs the ASEAN Summit later this month.
00:21Mohamad Hassan will meet junta leader Min Ong Lang along with Myanmar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister
00:28to press for implementation of the ASEAN Five-Point Peace Plan.
00:33The plan, agreed to in 2021 after the coup that toppled Myanmar's civilian government, has made little progress.
00:40The junta has been barred from ASEAN meetings since 2022 for failing to honour its commitments.
00:46Myanmar is expected to hold the first round of its general election on December 28,
00:50a vote critics say is designed to keep the military in power through proxy parties.
00:55Most opposition groups have been barred or refused to participate.
00:59Mohamad Hassan has said ASEAN does not view the election as a priority,
01:03stressing the focus should remain on peace and national reconciliation.
01:08He also warned that recent ceasefire violations, including a deadly attack in Sagaing that killed at least 20 people,
01:14are undermining peace efforts.
01:16The trip marks one of the highest-level engagements between an ASEAN member and Myanmar's military leaders this year,
01:23as the region seeks a path to end the country's civil conflict.
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