Anna Mogato | November 13, 2026
MANILA – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) did not invite the leader of Myanmar’s military government to attend the three-day leader’s summit in Manila, upholding the ban imposed after the generals toppled a civilian government in 2021.
ASEAN has not allowed Myanmar’s high-level participation in ASEAN as long as it does not comply with the five-point consensus agreed after the coup.
Dominic Xavier Imperial, spokesman for ASEAN affairs, said that the ASEAN leaders will review and decide on the ban, putting the five-point consensus high on its agenda during the meetings next week.
Imperial said an ASEAN document will be issued on Myanmar’s reintegration.
“It is a negotiated document. And whatever the decision of the leaders will be reflected in that [document],” Imperial said. (Also read: ASEAN makes headway in Myanmar, Code of Conduct negotiations)
During the meeting with her counterparts, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro will be sharing a report during her visit to Myanmar last October 28 to 30 for a humanitarian mission.
The report will assess the political situation on the ground after the special envoy’s visit to Yangon and serve as basis for ministers to decide whether Myanmar would be reintegrated.
ASEAN has not allowed Myanmar’s current head of state to attend ASEAN meetings, instead inviting the permanent secretary of foreign affairs to represent the state.
It has been five years since Myanmar plunged into a political crisis after the military junta seized control of the government.
In that same year, ASEAN ministers drafted the five-point consensus to address the humanitarian and political crisis in the nation.