Rising global tensions and the ongoing Myanmar crisis took focus at the East Asia Summit on September 7, during the last day of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Jakarta.
Speaking at the opening of the East Asia Forum, Indonesian President Joko Widodo urged fellow leaders to defuse tensions and not create new conflicts or wars.
Bangladesh President Mohammad Shahabuddin, who was also present in the meeting, called the international community to find a durable solution to the conflict in Myanmar, which has driven hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees to his country. Shahabuddin also said delays to repatriation of refugees and shortage of humanitarian support could put the entire region at risk.
In a statement on September 6, ASEAN chair Indonesia said regional leaders expressed “grave concern” over a lack of substantial progress on their five-point peace plan for Myanmar.
(Inputs from Reuters)