Myanmar leader Min Aung Hlaing to visit Thailand next month

Myanmar’s leader Min Aung Hlaing will make an official visit to Thailand next month, according to a report by Japanese media outlet Kyodo News yesterday. The trip would mark his second visit to an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member state since taking office as president.

Citing "ASEAN sources," Kyodo News reported that the former general, who led the 2021 military coup, would travel to Thailand in early August. The sources "did not provide the detailed schedule of his visit to Thailand," but noted that Min Aung Hlaing has been actively working to normalize his new government's relations with ASEAN.

Background on ASEAN Relations

Since late 2021, ASEAN has barred Myanmar's post-coup regime from attending its summits due to insufficient efforts to implement the Five-Point Consensus—the bloc's plan for resolving the country's conflict. Shortly after his election as president in April, Min Aung Hlaing announced that his new "civilian" administration intended to "enhance international relations and strive to restore normal relations" with the 11-nation bloc.

Recent Diplomatic Engagements

• July 3–5: Min Aung Hlaing traveled to Laos for his first official trip to an ASEAN member state since taking office. He met with President Thongloun Sisoulith and signed several agreements, including one on cooperation in space technology. The visit came one month after Lao Foreign Minister Thongsavanh Phomvihane visited Naypyidaw.
• Last month: Min Aung Hlaing also made high-profile official visits to India and China, both of which have effectively recognized the legitimacy of his military-backed administration.

Thailand's Role in Reengagement

Thailand has been a key advocate for ASEAN's reengagement with Myanmar since late 2024, when it hosted an "informal consultation" in Bangkok attended by foreign ministers and high-level representatives from Myanmar's military junta and five neighboring countries: Laos, China, India, Bangladesh, and Thailand.

Thailand also allowed Min Aung Hlaing to visit for the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) summit in April 2025.

In February, Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow announced that his country wanted "to be a bridge connecting Myanmar back to ASEAN."

On Sunday, Thailand hosted and helped broker an "informal meeting" between Myanmar Foreign Minister Tin Maung Swe and his ASEAN counterparts in Bangkok—the first such meeting since the coup.

Stance on the Five-Point Consensus

Following Sunday's meeting, Sihasak stated that Thailand, like ASEAN as a whole, still adhered to the Five-Point Consensus, which calls for an immediate cessation of violence in Myanmar and inclusive dialogue featuring "all parties" to the country's intersecting conflicts.

"This process of engagement does not mean any change in our basic position as reflected in the Five-Point Consensus, but it does mean achieving towards engagement, listening, and being realistic about what can be achieved," he said, as reported by Reuters.

Myanmar's Hardening Position

Meanwhile, Myanmar's new government has toughened its stance against the Five-Point Consensus and grown more vocal about its continued exclusion from ASEAN. Last week, the parliament passed a motion rejecting the Consensus as a form of interference by ASEAN that was inconsistent with the country's "political reality."

Regime propaganda accounts on social media have echoed this view. "Until ASEAN respects its foundational principle of non-interference and acknowledges the realities surrounding Myanmar's newly elected government, no progress can be made," the Views of Myanmar account on X stated yesterday. "Myanmar will no longer accept a rigid, one-sided enforcement of the Five-Point Statement."

Challenges Ahead

With several ASEAN member states—including Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore—advocating a harder line on Myanmar, normalization is unlikely without significant concessions or actions by authorities in Naypyidaw.

In addition to discussions on border security and efforts to combat transnational crime, Min Aung Hlaing's upcoming trip to Thailand will likely involve talks on possible steps Myanmar's new government might take to advance normalization with ASEAN. Whether it is willing to make the necessary concessions to convince all ASEAN member states to bring it back into the fold remains unclear.