London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Jul 18, 2026

Open To Negotiate With Aung San Suu Kyi, Says Myanmar's Military Chief

Open To Negotiate With Aung San Suu Kyi, Says Myanmar's Military Chief

Aung San Suu Kyi has been detained since Myanmar's army toppled her government in a coup in February last year.

Myanmar's military chief said Friday the junta is open to negotiations with ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi to end the crisis sparked by its coup after her trials in a junta-run court have concluded.

"After the legal processes against her according to the law are finished we are going to consider (negotiations) based on her response," Min Aung Hlaing said in a statement.

Suu Kyi, 77, has been detained since the generals toppled her government in a coup on February 1 last year, ending the Southeast Asian country's brief period of democracy.

She has so far been jailed for 17 years for a clutch of charges rights groups say are politically motivated.

Suu Kyi faces decades more in prison if convicted on a raft of other charges she is battling in a closed junta court.

Journalists have been barred from the proceedings, her lawyers gagged from speaking to the media and the junta has given no indication of when her trials might finish.

In July a junta spokesman told AFP it was "not impossible" that the regime would enter into dialogue with Suu Kyi to resolve the turmoil sparked by the military's power-grab last year.

"We cannot say that (negotiations with Suu Kyi) are impossible," Zaw Min Tun told AFP at the time.

Suu Kyi remains a revered figure locally for her courageous opposition to a previous junta, despite her international reputation suffering after she won the 2015 elections and governed in a power-sharing deal with the generals.

But for those currently embroiled in fighting with the military, many have said the movement must go further than what the Nobel laureate led decades ago.

Dissidents today say the goal now is to permanently root out military dominance from the country's politics and economy.

 Stalled diplomacy


Diplomatic efforts by the 10-country bloc Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) -- of which Myanmar is a member -- have so far failed to halt the bloodshed.

Last year, the bloc agreed on a "five-point consensus", which calls for a cessation of violence and constructive dialogue, but the junta has largely ignored it.

This week UN special envoy Noeleen Heyzer made her first trip to the country since being appointed last year and met junta chief Min Aung Hlaing and other top military officials.

But she was denied a meeting with Suu Kyi, and rights groups said they had little optimism her visit would persuade the military to end its bloody crackdown and engage in dialogue with opponents of its coup.

More than 2,200 people have been killed and over 15,000 arrested in the military's crackdown on dissent since it seized power, according to a local monitoring group.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
For 36 Years, He Scammed About 300 Luxury Hotels — Until He Was Caught
England's World Cup Exit Expected to Cost Hospitality and Retail £334 Million
Former ICC Prosecutor Aide Speaks Publicly About Allegations Against Karim Khan
Opposition Raises Questions Over June Heatwave Power Grid Pressures
Mastercard Explores Sale of Majority Stake in UK Payments Operator Vocalink
Boeing Forecasts Global Commercial Aircraft Fleet Will Double by 2045
London GP Surgeries Receive £18 Million to Expand Primary Care Capacity
Health Advisers Recommend Nationwide Meningitis B Vaccination for Teenagers
OECD Warns UK Economy Faces Slower Growth and Weak Productivity
Treasury Places Major Global Cloud Providers Under Direct Financial Oversight
Financial Markets Rally as Shabana Mahmood Emerges as Leading Treasury Candidate
Incoming Government Prepares Thames Water Nationalisation and New North Sea Drilling Approvals
UK Government Plans Deep Cuts to Bilateral Aid for African Nations
United States and Iran Exchange Direct Strikes for Seventh Consecutive Night
Incoming Prime Minister Andy Burnham Confirmed as Labour Leader Ahead of Downing Street Handover
Britain Nationalises British Steel to Protect Scunthorpe Production and Strategic Supply
Andy Burnham Takes Labour Leadership and Prepares to Become Britain’s Seventh Prime Minister in a Decade
Tech Companies Want to Move Computing Off Your Screen and Onto Your Body
White House Teleprompter Operator Earned More Than $100,000 From Bets Linked to the President's Speeches
French Prime Minister Survives No-Confidence Vote After Controversial Budget Cuts
European Commission Opens Excessive Deficit Procedure Against France
French Senate Blocks Key Immigration Reform Measures
French Government Pushes EU Action Against Ultra-Fast Fashion Imports
French Parliament Debates Expanded Autonomy Powers for Corsica
France Reopens Autonomy Talks With New Caledonia After Months of Unrest
Bordeaux Wine Producers Seek Three Hundred Million Euro Aid Package After Export Collapse
French Farmers Block Spain Border Crossings Over Imported Food Competition
Cannes Film Festival Bans Fully Artificial Intelligence-Generated Films From Competition
TotalEnergies Shifts More Than Three Billion Euros of Green Investment From Europe to the United States
LVMH Chief Executive Bernard Arnault Presents Succession Plan for Luxury Empire
Kering Reports Fifteen Percent Revenue Drop as Chinese Luxury Demand Weakens
Sanofi Reports Positive Results From Messenger RNA Respiratory Vaccine Trials
France Places Energy Price Caps Under Review to Protect Households Through Winter
EDF Connects Two New Nuclear Reactors to France’s Electricity Grid
Mistral Secures European Commission Contract for Sovereign Artificial Intelligence Models
Renault Opens Next-Generation Electric Battery Plant in Northern France
Air France Signs Two Billion Euro Sustainable Aviation Fuel Deal to Cut Emissions
Marseille Launches Three Billion Euro Port Expansion to Strengthen Mediterranean Trade Role
French-Owned Ubisoft Announces Global Restructuring With Nearly One Thousand Job Cuts
National Railway Operator Suspends Artificial Intelligence Ticket Pricing System After Consumer Backlash
United Kingdom to Ban Sales of High-Caffeine Energy Drinks to Under-Sixteens
Home Office Designates Iranian and Russian Paramilitary Groups as National Security Threats
National Health Service Launches Housing Plan to Retain London Healthcare Workers
British Heatwave Fuels Wildfires and Emergency Evacuations in Scotland
United Kingdom and Estonia Sign Defence Agreement to Strengthen NATO’s Eastern Flank
United Kingdom Cuts Bilateral Aid to African Nations by More Than Eighty Percent
Bank of England Overhauls Banking Rules to Encourage More Lending to Businesses
United Kingdom and India Free Trade Agreement Enters Into Force, Reshaping Bilateral Economic Ties
Andy Burnham Confirmed as New Labour Leader and Prime Minister-Designate
UK Government Faces Pressure Over Extreme Heat Workplace Rules
×