The Albany Gazette - ASEAN special envoy meets Myanmar junta chief

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has led stalled diplomatic efforts to end the chaos unleashed by last year's putsch, which ousted Aung San Suu Kyi's government and sparked mass protests.

Cambodian Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn and junta chief Min Aung Hlaing discussed "the situation of protests and violence stemming from political disagreement" and humanitarian cooperation, the junta's information team said in a statement.

The envoy's visit, which ends Wednesday, is aimed at "encouraging political consultations... with all parties concerned," according to an earlier statement from the Cambodian government that did not provide details.

Prak Sokhonn had previously requested to be allowed to meet with members of a "National Unity Government" dominated by lawmakers from Suu Kyi's ousted party that is working to overturn the coup.

The junta -- which has classified members of the shadow government as "terrorists" -- swiftly rebuffed the request.

Last year, the junta refused to grant ASEAN's then special envoy permission to visit Suu Kyi, who has been detained since the coup.

The bloc later barred Min Aung Hlaing from attending a leader's summit, a major snub from the body that has long been seen as a toothless talking shop.

Myanmar is increasingly isolated on the international stage, with Cambodian strongman ruler Hun Sen's January visit the first by any foreign leader since the generals seized power.

More than 1,600 people have been killed and over 12,000 arrested in a military crackdown since the coup, according to a local monitoring group.

(Y.Yildiz--BBZ)