Thailand has postponed a regional summit, to which Myanmar junta leader Min Aung Hlaing has controversially been invited, until next year, citing the need for more time to prepare for the event.
Thailand is the current chair of the Bay of Bengal Initiative, a regional organization that links South and Southeast Asian countries on the rim of the Bay of Bengal including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Thailand.
It had planned to host the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) summit on November 27-30.
However, the Pattaya Daily reported on Monday that, according to Kanchana Patarachoke, director-general of the Department of Information and spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Thailand has decided to reschedule the 6th BIMSTEC meeting until next year to allow for better preparation.
The rescheduling follows a report from Thai PBS World that all BIMSTEC leaders, including Myanmar junta leader Min Aung Hlaing, have been invited to attend the summit.
It’s not clear whether the postponement is the result of problems caused by the invitation to the Myanmar regime boss, who has been shunned internationally—including by regional leaders—for his 2021 coup against Myanmar’s democratically elected government and his forces’ atrocities against civilians for rejecting military rule in the country.
With its BIMSTEC invitation to Min Aung Hlaing, Thailand became just the second country in the world after Russia to welcome the Myanmar junta leader. Even the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), of which Myanmar is a member, has excluded Min Aung Hlaing from its summits for his failure to honor the bloc’s peace plan for the country. China, despite being one of the junta’s major allies, has not invited him to visit.
Thailand’s previous government led by Prime Minister Parayut Chan-o-cha was frequently accused of being too cozy with the junta, but did not invite Min Aung Hlaing to visit the country after his coup.
Regarding the decision to delay the meeting, the Pattaya Daily reported that the Thai government felt it was necessary in order to ensure a smooth and well-planned execution in terms of both content and logistics, and to make the most effective use of the allocated budget.
