Despite Asean’s call to prioritise peace over a sham election, Myanmar’s military rulers appear bent on clinging to power no matter the cost.

By Danial Azhar LANGKAWI, Malaysia (Reuters) -Southeast Asian nations told Myanmar's military government on Sunday its plan to hold an election amid an escalating civil war should not be its priority,

Malaysia has appointed a new ASEAN special envoy to Myanmar to try and implement the regional bloc’s stalled peace plan for the war-torn country.

The bloc says that any poll must be “inclusive,” but it has limited power to deter the junta from its election plans.

Southeast Asian foreign ministers told Myanmar’s junta to prioritise a ceasefire in its civil war over fresh elections during a meeting in Malaysia

The regional bloc told a junta representative at a meeting that a poll is “not a priority at the moment," Malaysia’s foreign minister said.

After three years of failed diplomacy, the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) has upped the ante and warned the military junta in Myanmar to end the civil war and allow the free flow of much-needed humanitarian aid.

Southeast Asian foreign ministers are gathering for their first meeting this year under the regional bloc’s new chair, Malaysia, seeking a breakthrough over Myanmar’s drawn-out civil war and territorial disputes in the South China Sea.

Myanmar remains one of the region’s most pressing challenges, demanding Asean’s collective attention and decisive action to uphold its founding principles of democracy, human rights, constitutional government and regional stability, as enshrined in its charter.

LANGKAWI, Malaysia -- ASEAN foreign ministers warned Myanmar's military regime on Sunday that its election planned for this year has to be "inclusive" and "involve all stakeholders."

LANGKAWI: Asean foreign ministers have stressed to Myanmar that it is more important to bring about peace in the country rather than hold a national election, says Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan.

Foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) discussed developments in the South China Sea (SCS), Myanmar and the Middle East during a retreat in Langkawi, Malaysia on Sunday.