TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi recently responded to the public belief presuming that ASEAN had acknowledged Myanmar’s junta government in the ASEAN summit.

In an interview with Tempo, Minister Retno assured the presence of the Myanmar junta was not a form of acknowledgement but rather an engagement. She said the recognition of the new Myanmar government was not mentioned during the meeting.

“There were many asking about the issue of recognition. During this moment we did not comment on the issue of recognition,” she said in an interview with Tempo on Thursday, April 29. “We [engaged them] because we are able to voice what we demand.”

Retno Marsudi believed it was essential to engage with the Myanmar junta as they were one of the essential parties that could help establish a solution and end the crisis. She believed the end-goal to solve the effects of the military coup, which the junta initiated, would not come to fruition if future plans by the junta were unknown.

Asked whether Indonesia acknowledged the Myanmar junta as the legitimate leader of the country, she answered diplomatically, saying that the Indonesian government continued to try to act correctly about the country's status.

In regard to the engagement between ASEAN and the Myanmar anti-junta body, the National Unity Government (NUG), Retno was unsure about the date, but she was upbeat the engagement would soon be realized following intense communications.

“We are trying to communicate with the stakeholders in Myanmar, which include the CRPH ( Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw) and also the NUG,” said Minister Retno Marsudi.

Read: ASEAN Leaders Reach Five-point Consensus on Ending Myanmar Crisis

ISTMAN MP