Four Asean air force chiefs skip Myanmar meeting

Thailand was represented at a condensed function that concentrated on environmental concerns.

Four Asean air force chiefs skip Myanmar meeting
ACM Alongkorn Wannarot, the commander-in-chief of the Royal Thai Air Force, will attend the Asean Air Chiefs Conference on Thursday in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar. ( Photo provided )

Many of his Southeast Asian counterparts are not present, but the commander of the Royal Thai Air Force ( RTAF) is attending a gathering of Asean air force commanders hosted by Myanmar.

Heat army commanders from Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, and Brunei have joined ACM Alongkorn Wannarot at the Asean Air Chiefs Conference in Nay Pyi Taw, according to the activist organization Justice for Myanmar.

Because the occasion may be held in Myanmar and presided over by the military junta, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines had previously declared their intention to ban it, according to local media reviews. Singapore didn’t give a member either.

The four Asian states that abstained have been vocal in their calls for the military coup in Myanmar to stop using violence against its citizens and abide by a peace agreement they made in 2021 but have since disregarded.

For the past two decades, Myanmar has been left out of the majority of high-level Asean gatherings, including the leaders’ height.

The dark National Unity Government of Myanmar’s deputy defense director, Mung Maung Swe, praised the boycotts and claimed they were a reflection of the juntas’ growing isolation following the coup in February 2021.

The condensed Asean Air Chiefs Conference, which will concentrate on economic problems, will go on through Friday.

The chief of the Myanmar air power, ACM Htun Aung, stated that the theme of this year’s event was” Asean Air Forces Cooperation for a Sustainable Environment.”

To protect the environment, the RTAF declared that it would work with its Asean counterparts to cut carbon emissions and air pollution.

The RTAF has a allows team to assist in addressing the issue. Air pollution caused by ultra-fine dust, much of it from agricultural losing, has had an effect on countries in the region.

In order to jointly increase their capacity to handle natural disasters, ACM Alongkorn also used the meeting to invite the head of the Asean air force to participate in the 2025 Exercise for Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief ( HADR ) in Thailand.

The 2024 Asean Air Chiefs Conference will be held in Cambodia.