Fuadi Pitsuwan of the Surin Pitsuwan Foundation described Thaksin’s influence in Thailand as “precarious” and that relying on him was “dangerous”.
“Anwar should trust his own foreign minister and team instead of relying on Thaksin,” he said at a panel discussion on the Myanmar crisis during the 38th Asia-Pacific Roundtable here today.
Earlier this year, Thaksin was appointed as a “personal adviser” to Anwar as Malaysia chairs Asean this year. He is supported by a team comprising members from various Asean nations.
His daughter, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, is the current Thai prime minister and faces calls to resign from the top post after a phone call between her and former Cambodian premier Hun Sen was leaked.
In the leaked call, Paetongtarn is heard discussing an ongoing border dispute with Hun Sen, addressing the former Cambodian leader as “uncle” and referring to the Thai army commander in the country’s northeast as her opponent.
Min Zin, a political analyst and director of the Institute for Strategy and Policy in Myanmar, said the country will need Asean to safeguard its interests and prevent it from “sleepwalking into China’s orbit”, citing Myanmar’s precarious economic and political situation due to the civil war.
He also pointed out that the massive 7.9-magnitude earthquake in March had failed to bring the warring groups to the negotiating table.
“The earthquake was not able to create enough incentive for conflicting parties to negotiate because the conflict map and disaster map did not correspond to one another.”
Lilianne Fan, from the Malaysian Advisory Group on Myanmar, said the people of Myanmar feel that Asean can do more to address the crisis and are appreciative of its efforts.
She said Asean had been creative in trying to help Myanmar, given the constraints the regional bloc faces. “They also appreciate Malaysia’s efforts in assisting the country and welcome the institutionalisation of the special envoy on the crisis.”
Meanwhile, Arnaud de Baecque of the International Committee of the Red Cross said efforts to resolve the Myanmar crisis must go beyond mere humanitarian aid.
“Humanitarian aid to Myanmar cannot resolve a political crisis, especially not one this complex.”
Myanmar is currently ravaged by a civil war between the ruling junta and a broad-based opposition that includes numerous armed organisations.
The country’s State Administration Council announced in March that it will hold a general election either in December this year or January 2026 at the latest, according to international media reports.
Anwar previously acknowledged the limited progress on Asean’s five-point consensus for Myanmar over the years but expressed a degree of satisfaction with recent humanitarian engagements.
Malaysia is the first Asean chair to have successfully engaged both Myanmar’s civilian government and the junta, demonstrating that engagement does not necessarily imply recognition.