Myanmar belongs to the 10-member Association of South-East Asian Nations , but the annual ministers' retreat is being held in Jakarta without Myanmar's Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin.
Last year, when Asean was chaired by Cambodia, Min Aung Hlaing was not invited to the November meeting of Asean leaders in Phnom Penh after Myanmar declined to let an Asean envoy meet with her. "Economic crisis, energy crisis, food crisis as well as warfare, we face all of them this year,” Widodo said."Asean will remain essential and relevant for people in the region and beyond as Asean is the epicentre of growth.”
She said Asean was disappointed by its lack of progress in the past two years in Myanmar, despite growing countermovement and global threats of sanctions and political exclusion. "Indonesia requests that access to all stakeholders be given to the Asean secretary-general,” Marsudi said last month, adding that ASEAN will also continue to collaborate with a United Nations special envoy to help Myanmar to exit the crisis.
"Resolving the crisis in Myanmar is the main challenge of Indonesia's chairmanship,” Nandyatama said.