ASEAN leaders plan Myanmar visit this week amid divisions

Intra-ASEAN diplomatic sniping reported as the regional bloc struggles to make a unified response to the political crisis.

The chair and secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) plan to travel to Myanmar this week even as the 10-nation group remains divided on how to respond to the military coup there, four diplomatic sources have told the Reuters news agency. Myanmar is a member of ASEAN and has a policy of non-interference in the affairs of members, but it has led the main diplomatic effort to resolve the crisis that has engulfed the country since February 1 when the military staged a coup and removed the democratically elected government. The military has detained Myanmar’s civilian leader, Aung San Suu Kyi and imprisoned political opponents amid a deadly crackdown on protesters, resulting in a growing refugee crisis and the collapse of the economy.