ASEAN SEC-GEN DISCUSSES MYANMAR CRISIS WITH UN SPECIAL ENVOY

JAKARTA, June 27 (Bernama) -- ASEAN secretary-general Dr Kao Kim Hourn on Thursday held discussions on the Myanmar crisis with the United Nations (UN) secretary-general’s special envoy on Myanmar Julie Bishop at the ASEAN Headquarters here.

During their meeting, according to ASEAN Secretariat, they exchanged views on regional efforts, particularly those by ASEAN and the UN, in supporting the implementation of ASEAN’s Five-Point Consensus.

The discussions also focused on ASEAN’s efforts in delivering humanitarian assistance to the people of Myanmar.

UN secretary-general António Guterres appointed Bishop, who served as Australia's Foreign Minister from 2013 to 2018, as special envoy on Myanmar on April 5.

In another development, the World Food Programme (WFP), a vital UN food assistance branch, has condemned the recent looting and burning of its Maungdaw warehouse in Myanmar’s Rakhine State last Saturday.

The organisation urged all parties to respect international humanitarian law and ensure safe access for delivering essential assistance to those in need.

“WFP staff have been unable to access the Maungdaw warehouse since late May due to escalating conflict in northern Rakhine,” the organisation said in a statement.

The warehouse contained 1,175 metric tonnes of life-saving food and supplies, sufficient to sustain 64,000 people for a month.

The WFP has provided emergency aid to nearly one million people affected by conflict in Myanmar so far this year.

Myanmar has been in crisis since February 2021, when the military seized power from the democratically-elected government led by Aung San Suu Kyi.

-- BERNAMA