SIEM REAP: Prime Minister Hun Sen has said that 10 years ago, in 2012, the Prime Minister had asked the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to consider the establishment of a "no-civil war zone" or "no-conflict zone.” However, at that time, no ASEAN member would consider this issue.

Speaking at the Opening Ceremony of the 9th ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting at the Sokha Hotel in Siem Reap on Wednesday morning, 23 November, Prime Minister Hun Sen stated that the lack of attention given to this issue at that time likely affected what is happening in Myanmar today.

"Currently, Myanmar is moving towards civil war," he said. "In some parts of Myanmar, civil war has already taken place."

The Prime Minister further recalled Cambodia's past, as a country that suffered from more than three decades of war, and said that Cambodia has experience it can share with other countries to establish and maintain peace and build a post-war nation.

Prime Minister Hun Sen shared three factors to the achievement of peace in Cambodia, which were openness to negotiations, ensuring security for all parties, and autonomy for the countries involved.

"The ownership of the nation is very important for peace talks," he stressed.

The Myanmar crisis stems from a military coup conducted on 1 February 2021, which saw the arrest of State Councilor Aung San Suu Kyi, President Win Myint and several other ruling party officials by the Myanmar Armed Forces, who refused to recognize the results from the November 2020 election and thus handed over the country’s leadership to the Commander-in-Chief of the National Army, Min Aung Hlaing.

The coup sparked widespread protests in Myanmar, with numerous armed groups opposing the military regime.

Myanmar is now a country with two governments and about 20 ethnic armed groups. The ongoing conflict is one of the longest continuing wars in the world.

^{PHOTO: ហ៊ុន យុទ្ធគុណ}