ASEAN leaders have decided to block Myanmar junta leader Min Aung Hlaing’s attendance at the upcoming Brunei summit due to his “non-cooperative stance” on the bloc’s Five Point Consensus plan, according to a report by Japan’s NHK news network.

DVB notes that if this news is confirmed to be true, it means that members of the bloc have managed to reach an unanimous decision on the point. Whilst nations had been debating the motion earlier in the day, the Foreign Minister of the Phillippines, Teddy Locsin, told Reuters that blocking Min Aung Hlaing’s attendance was vital to show to world that ASEAN was not simply “a bunch of guys who always agree with each other on the worthless things, things that don’t count in the world”.

DVB claims that the move will undoubtedly be a huge dent to the pride of the Tatmadaw, who had been regular attendees at ASEAN meets since the February coup.

Indeed, a move to block an entire group from representation at an ASEAN summit would be without precedent. NHK did, however, report that a “senior foreign office official” will be invited to take the place of the junta head at the summit. Reuters, on the other hand, have claimed that sources suggest that a “non-political figure” will be invited. What this means is unclear; finding someone who is non-political in the current situation sounds about as hopeless as a continuing fudge of the issue. Overall, certainly an interesting change in dynamic at ASEAN, perhaps signalling broader pressure from international actors on the issue, DVB notes.