Thais justify talks with Myanmar as key

Thailand on Monday justified hosting talks aimed at re-engaging with Myanmar’s shunned military, saying dialogue was necessary to protect its border with the strife-torn country, even as key Southeast Asian neighbours stayed away.
Myanmar’s generals have been barred from high-level meetings of the 10-member Association of Southeast Nations (ASEAN) since they seized power in a 2021 coup and unleashed violence on those who challenged their takeover.
But Thailand’s outgoing military-backed government invited ASEAN foreign ministers, including the one appointed by Myanmar’s junta, to discuss a proposal for the bloc to “fully re-engage Myanmar at the leaders’ level”.
Critics see the meeting as undermining a unified ASEAN approach to the crisis in Myanmar but Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said talks were necessary to protect his country, which shares a long border with Myanmar.