PHNOM PENH: Prime Minister Hun Sen and the Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong, have agreed to continue the work of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting, especially the work of the Special Envoy of the ASEAN Chair to help resolve the crisis in Myanmar. This agreement was made during a meeting between Prime Minister Hun Sen and Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong over videoconference Friday afternoon.

During the meeting, the Prime Minister of Singapore thanked Prime Minister Hun Sen for his contribution to resolving the crisis in Myanmar, and expressed his support for the efforts made by Cambodia during its chairmanship of ASEAN this year.

The Minister Delegate Attached to the Prime Minister, Minister Kao Kim Hourn, told reporters after the meeting that there was an exchange of views between the two prime ministers, and that Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong also agreed with Prime Minister Hun Sen that the resumption of work is to allow the ASEAN Foreign Ministers to have a meeting to review further work, especially the work of the ASEAN Chair, which requires the help of Myanmar.

The current meeting between the Prime Ministers of Cambodia and Singapore took place one day after the two countries’ respective foreign ministers met over telephone. The Singaporean Foreign Minister, Vivian Balakrishnan, expressed regret that the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, previously scheduled for 18-19 January in Siem Reap, had been postponed. However, he expressed support for Cambodia's efforts towards resolving the crisis in Myanmar and for Cambodia's efforts to communicate with all stakeholders to fully implement the Five Point consensus in a timely manner

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

The coup has angered the people of Myanmar, who have staged a series of protests as armed groups to oppose the military regime. Myanmar is now a country with two governments, about 20 ethnic armed groups, and one of the longest running civil wars in the world.

Prime Minister Hun Sen, as the 2022 ASEAN Chair, visited Myanmar on 7-8 January to help find a solution to the national conflict and bring the country back into ASEAN. During the visit, Myanmar military leader Min Aung Hlaing promised Prime Minister Hun Sen that the Myanmar military would extend the ceasefire until the end of 2022, facilitate the ASEAN special envoy to meet with all stakeholders in the country, including ethnic armed groups, as well as give access to ASEAN aid for Myanmar.