H.E. PRAK Sokhonn, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, in his capacity as the Special Envoy of the ASEAN Chair on Myanmar, addressed a closed-session briefing for the Council’s Members via videoconference on May 27 on the implementation of the Five-point Consensus.

The briefing was made at the invitation of Her Excellency Linda Thomas-Greenfield, President of the United Nations Security Council for May 2022, said a press release of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation AKP received this evening.

According to the source, during the Meeting, H.E. Deputy Prime Minister shared updates on what Cambodia has done thus far, including the outcome of his first visit as the Special Envoy of the ASEAN Chair to Myanmar from Mar. 21-23, 2022, and the result of the Consultative Meeting on ASEAN Humanitarian Assistance to Myanmar on May 6, 2022.

On the outcomes of his first visit to Myanmar, H.E. Deputy Prime Minister apprised the Council of digests from meeting the four different prominent groups in Myanmar, namely the State Administration Council (SAC), non-SAC actors, diplomatic corps, and UN Specialised Agencies. The meetings provided the Special Envoy and his team with opportunities to listen, discuss, and extend the good offices to Myanmar on how ASEAN could help Myanmar to manifest more progress in the 5PC implementation.

H.E. Deputy Prime Minister highlighted that these actors shared the same aspirations, which are for Myanmar to return to normalcy and for humanitarian issues on the ground to be addressed, all of which are in the interest of the people of Myanmar. He shared his view that the different political actors in Myanmar have to be more open to constructive dialogue so as to build mutual understanding, trust, and confidence, conducive to an inclusive and credible peace process in Myanmar. In this regard, the Special Envoy reaffirmed Cambodia’s readiness and commitment to be a keen listener and sincere facilitator for Myanmar.

With regard to the Consultative Meeting on ASEAN Humanitarian Assistance to Myanmar on May 6, 2022 held in a hybrid format in Phnom Penh, the Special Envoy accentuated three key points, namely: (1) ASEAN Humanitarian Assistance Delivery Arrangement Framework, (2) addressing operational challenges of the delivery of humanitarian assistance and (3) Framework for COVID-19 Vaccine Administration in Myanmar.

– On ASEAN Humanitarian Assistance Delivery Arrangement Framework, the Meeting agreed that the AHA Centre, in close consultation with the Myanmar Task Force, will identify states and regions for the implementation of this Framework. These states and regions include Kayah, Kayin, Magway, Saigang, Bago, Shan and Rakhine.

– On the need to address the operational challenges, we obtained the agreement from the SAC to expedite the delivery of humanitarian assistance and facilitate administrative and legal requirements. The SAC also pledged to offer full cooperation and support to the ASEAN Monitoring Team for it to be able to fulfill its roles in accordance with the executive paper adopted at the 54th AMM.

– Concerning the Framework for COVID-19 Vaccine Administration in Myanmar, the AHA Centre and the Ministry of Health of Myanmar (MOH) agreed to implement the Joint MOH-Partners Vaccination to Hard-to-Reach Areas Framework, through which the operational teams of 50:50 distribution between the MOH and partners will be deployed to administer vaccines in the communities in need.

The Special Envoy underlined that the immediate priority would be to roll out what has been agreed upon at the recent Consultative Meeting, especially the effort to timely deliver humanitarian assistance to those most in need without any discrimination.

H.E. Deputy Prime Minister also informed the Council that he and his team are now working on the preparation for his second visit to Myanmar in order to further advance the progress in the implementation of the Five-Point Consensus. During this upcoming visit, the Special Envoy hopes to meet as many relevant stakeholders as possible in addition to those he met during the first visit.

Source: Agency Kampuchea Press