Jakarta. Indonesia has told Myanmar’s junta chief-turned-president, Min Aung Hlaing, that his country remains part of the “ASEAN family”, as the Southeast Asian bloc navigates around the new leadership.

Indonesia’s Foreign Minister Sugiono made a surprise visit to Naypyidaw on Monday, about two months after Min Aung Hlaing was sworn in as the president. The latter had ousted an elected government five years ago and eventually cemented his power through an election that faced widespread condemnation for alleged rigging. Sugiono said that he had relayed President Prabowo Subianto’s message to Min Aung Hlaing.

“Indonesia remains committed to working together with all stakeholders in Myanmar. So we would be able to create dialogue and spur an inclusive and sustainable peace,” Sugiono told the press via a video statement on Tuesday.

Sugiono expressed Jakarta’s intention to remain Myanmar’s trade, investment, and capacity-building partner. Official statistics showed that Indonesia-Myanmar trade failed to hit the $1-billion mark in 2025, unlike the previous year.

Jakarta also sees potential for cooperation on food and energy security. Sugiono did not expand on what sort of food commodities Jakarta was eyeing, although Myanmar had been among Indonesia’s rice suppliers. 

“Indonesia will continue to encourage initiatives that can bolster our bilateral ties. Because Myanmar is part of the ASEAN family," Sugiono said, while adding that Jakarta would continue to honor the “five-point consensus”.

This is a five-point peace plan that ASEAN drafted in 2021, the year when the coup started. Under the proposal, ASEAN wants Myanmar to hold a “constructive dialogue” among all parties, political prisoners included. Despite the sluggish progress, ASEAN still wishes to stick to the five-point consensus.

ASEAN relations with Myanmar have become somewhat complicated as the bloc bars the war-torn country's military leaders from joining its summits. Russian leader Vladimir Putin has also invited Min Aung Hlaing to the upcoming Russia-ASEAN talks in Kazan, which would mark the latter’s first overseas trip as president. 

ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn recently told the Shangri-La Dialogue that the grouping’s members were recalibrating their Myanmar engagement. This includes having Myanmar’s foreign minister in virtual talks to find out “what is happening on the ground”.

“But at the same time, it is for Myanmar to listen to the concerns of ASEAN. There is no major change in ASEAN position, but it’s how to recalibrate our engagement,” Kao said.