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Indonesia, Timor-Leste reaffirm support for ASEAN’s Myanmar efforts
On his first visit to Indonesia since his return the the premiership in July of last year, Timor-Leste Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao also thanked Jakarta for its support of the country's membership in ASEAN.
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President Joko “Jokowi“ Widodo (right) and Timor-Leste Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão (left) wave to reporters before a closed-door bilateral meeting at Bogor Palace in Bogor, West Java, on Jan. 26, 2024. The leaders discussed bilateral cooperation, the resolution of border issues and the situation in post-coup Myanmar, among other topics. (Antara/Akbar Nugroho Gumay)
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ndonesia and Timor-Leste have said they continue to support ASEAN’s efforts to bring an end to the ongoing armed conflict in post-coup Myanmar, despite the bloc’s lack of demonstrable progress on the issue.
The statement was made during Timor-Leste Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao’s visit to Bogor Palace in Bogor, West Java, on Friday.
It was Xanana’s first diplomatic visit to Indonesia after his return to the premiership in July of last year. His party, the National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction (CNRT), won 41 percent of the vote in the country’s May 2023 parliamentary elections.
Xanana held a closed-door meeting with President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo at Bogor Palace to discuss issues including the Myanmar crisis and Timor-Leste’s membership in ASEAN.
“Both countries [have] agreed to support the ASEAN chairmanship of Laos this year in implementing the Five-Point Consensus [5PC],” Jokowi said at a joint press briefing on Friday.
He was referring to a peace proposal that calls for an immediate cessation of violence in Myanmar, dialogue among all parties to the conflict, the appointment and engagement of a special envoy on the crisis and the country’s acceptance of humanitarian aid. ASEAN and the Myanmar junta agreed to the proposal in April 2021, three months after the military coup in Myanmar.
But the plan has failed to stop the violence in Myanmar. Junta forces continue to launch assaults against rebel groups that have resulted in civilian casualties, and the military government has blocked or appropriated incoming humanitarian aid.
