Foreign Ministers of China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand hold informal meeting
2024-08-16
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This article is reproduced from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website;
On August 16, 2024 local time, China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand held an informal meeting of foreign ministers of the four countries in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Wang Yi, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister, Saleumxay Kommasith, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Laos, Than Soekarno-Sham, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Myanmar, and Aisri, Deputy Foreign Minister of Thailand attended the meeting.
Wang Yi said that China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand live side by side, "sitting in the same boat and drinking from the same river". We have a long border and a long history of exchanges. We understand Myanmar's special national conditions better than other countries, and are more capable and willing to provide assistance to Myanmar. No one wants Myanmar to restore stability and development more than Myanmar's neighbors. We are all full of sincerity and goodwill and hope to assist Myanmar in promoting the cooling and stabilization of the situation. The current situation in Myanmar is still worrying. On the Myanmar issue, we must adhere to three bottom lines, namely, Myanmar must not have internal turmoil or civil war, must not deviate from the track of the ASEAN family, and must not allow external forces to infiltrate and interfere at will.
Wang Yi pointed out that China's friendly policy towards Myanmar is aimed at all Myanmar people. We always adhere to the principle of non-interference in internal affairs, support Myanmar in safeguarding its sovereignty and national unity, support Myanmar in achieving domestic reconciliation through dialogue and consultation, and support Myanmar in finding a development path that suits its national conditions.
Wang Yi made several suggestions in this regard: First, we should jointly support Myanmar in advancing the domestic peace and reconciliation process in accordance with the law and in an orderly manner. The third version of the "Five-Point Roadmap" proposed by Myanmar is conducive to achieving this goal and should be understood and respected. At the same time, we should actively explore the points of convergence between the new "Five-Point Roadmap" and the "Five-Point Consensus" of ASEAN, promote each other and form a joint force; second, we should jointly support the people of Myanmar to overcome the current difficulties. We welcome all parties to provide humanitarian assistance to Myanmar. Any assistance should respect the will of the Myanmar government and people and be truly used to protect people's livelihood, rather than to create confrontation and conflict. We should promote practical cooperation with Myanmar, help Myanmar strengthen its own capabilities, and create favorable economic and social conditions for preventing conflicts. Third, we should jointly support the proper handling of the Myanmar issue in the ASEAN way, support ASEAN to maintain unity, support ASEAN's central position, and be vigilant against extraterritorial forces disrupting the situation and intensifying conflicts.
The Myanmar side introduced the current situation and the efforts made by the Myanmar government to maintain domestic stability, and thanked the three parties for extending a helping hand to Myanmar when it encountered difficulties as friendly neighbors. It is willing to make good use of the informal meeting to strengthen cooperation, enhance understanding, restore domestic stability and achieve political reconciliation as soon as possible.
The Thai side expressed that it hopes to see Myanmar maintain peace, unity and stability, respect Myanmar's proper handling of internal issues in its own way, and adhere to the principle of Myanmar people-led and Myanmar people-owned. Thailand is willing to maintain communication with all parties, provide assistance to Myanmar to the greatest extent possible, complement the ASEAN process, and strive to find a proper solution.
The Lao side said that the four countries share a common border and share weal and woe. As a neighbor and friend of Myanmar, Laos hopes that Myanmar will maintain stability and development and is willing to provide assistance to Myanmar. The informal meeting of the four parties will help to better understand the situation in Myanmar and jointly find a proper solution. Laos fully agrees with China's opinion on adhering to the principle of non-interference in internal affairs. The Myanmar issue can only be resolved by the Myanmar people, and external forces must be prevented from interfering.
