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Thailand pushing for talks to repair key Myanmar highway

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  • Thailand pushing for talks to repair key Myanmar highway
  • September 19, 2024
  • Article Body Text Bangkok — <p>Thailand wants to work with warring sides in Myanmar to repair a key highway cutting through the conflict-ridden country as it seeks to stabilise borders areas and keep trade routes open, Thai Foreign Minister Maris Sangiampongsa said on Thursday.</p> <p>Thailand has the support of the ASEAN regional bloc and India in the push to rebuild parts of the Asian Highway 1 (AH-1) that has been damaged by recent fighting, he told reporters.</p> <p>Laos, the current chair of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, has also asked Thailand to host a regional meeting on Myanmar before the end of the year, he said, without providing further details.</p> <p>&quot;I don't think Myanmar problems can be addressed militarily, but through constructive dialogue,&quot; Maris said.</p> <p>Myanmar has been in turmoil since February 2021, when its powerful generals ousted an elected civilian government, triggering a protest movement that has morphed into an armed rebellion against the ruling junta.</p> <p>The military government has lost control of swathes of the country and the economy has been crippled.</p> <p>ASEAN has barred the generals from attending its summits until progress is achieved on a 2021 peace plan devised by the bloc, which the junta agreed to but has failed to follow. That agreement includes dialogue between all sides in the conflict.</p> <p>An important trade route, the AH1 stretches more than 1,500 km (932 miles) from Myawaddy on the Thai-Myanmar frontier to Tamu on Myanmar's border with India.</p> <p>The area around Myawaddy, previously a conduit for more than $1 billion of annual border trade, saw <a href="https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL3N3GO48Y&amp;linkedFromStory=true">fierce fighting earlier this year</a> as rebel fighters pushed the junta out of the frontier town.</p>
  • Content Type Text
  • Language English
  • NewsML Media Topics Arts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
  • Subtitles / Dubbing Available No
  • Network VOA
  • Embargo Date September 19, 2024 02:38 EDT
  • Byline Reuters
  • Brand / Language Service Voice of America - English
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