ASEAN bloc halts Myanmar from assuming chairmanship in 2026

Southeast Asian political leaders have decided that Myanmar will not be permitted to take over the rotating leadership of their regional bloc, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as scheduled in 2026.

As reported by AP, the move stems from the current leadership of Myanmar lacking international recognition following a violent seizing of power in 2021, which saw then-government leader Aung San Suu Kyi being ousted.

The Philippines have agreed to take over the regional bloc’s chairmanship in 2026 instead during the ASEAN summit hosted by Indonesia on September 5.

Caliber.Az recalls, that the former Head of the government, Aung San Suu Kyi had come to power in 2015 in 2016 after having spent over 20 years in detention, 15 of these under house arrest by the former military junta. 

However, a 2017 army operation in Rakhine state drove more than half a million Muslim Rohingyas to flee to neighbouring Bangladesh, in what the United Nations called a "textbook example of ethnic cleansing", as reported by BBC. This damaged the new government's international reputation, and highlighted the military's continuing grip.