Thailand Welcomes US-Myanmar Talks, Expects ASEAN Discussion

Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow told Reuters in Lisbon on Friday, Oct. 24, 2026, during a four-nation European diplomatic tour, that Thailand welcomes U.S. engagement with Myanmar's military-backed government. The two sides met in Tokyo two weeks earlier, their second meeting in a month. "We don’t want to see Myanmar isolated, we don’t want Myanmar to be an arena for geopolitical rivalry … so the US engagement is something that we welcome," he said. Sihasak expects ASEAN leaders at the November summit in Manila to hold "a very substantive, very extensive, and very in-depth discussion on how to proceed on Myanmar." Myanmar has been barred since the 2021 coup. Min Aung Hlaing has visited Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia in recent months. Whether the summit would restore full representation remained unclear. On Thailand-Cambodia disputes he said resolution in 12 to 18 months "is possible, everything is possible," while adding "Right now, we haven’t achieved, to be very frank, much progress." Cambodia began UNCLOS conciliation in June after Thailand terminated a 2001 framework in May following border clashes; a second round concluded Oct. 18. The maritime area spans about 26,000 sq km with reserves worth as much as $300 billion. Thailand-EU free-trade talks could conclude by year-end.