The Association of Southeast Asian Nations announced it will not endorse Myanmar's ongoing military-organized elections or deploy official observers, Malaysian Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan revealed on January 20, 2026, marking the first clear statement from the 11-member regional bloc refusing to recognize the election results.
According to Mohamad Hasan's parliamentary testimony, ASEAN leaders decided at their October 2025 summit not to send observers to Myanmar because conditions for a credible election were not met, emphasizing that elections must be conducted with comprehensive and free participation rather than in phases or under restrictive conditions that bar certain candidates, stating "We didn't send observers and by virtue of that, we don't certify the election."
Myanmar's military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party appeared headed for parliamentary majority after securing 88% of lower house seats in the first phase with low voter turnout, in the country's first general election since the February 2021 coup that ousted Aung San Suu Kyi's civilian government and triggered widespread opposition that escalated into civil war.
Despite ASEAN's collective stance, internal divisions persist as individual member states including Cambodia and Vietnam chose to send observers independently according to Myanmar's Information Ministry, highlighting the bloc's struggle to maintain unified pressure on the junta while balancing principles of non-interference against concerns over regional stability, refugees, and cross-border security.
The decision effectively denies regional legitimacy to elections that the United Nations, Western governments, human rights organizations, and over 300 civil society groups have condemned as a "sham" designed to entrench military rule through political proxies rather than restore democracy, with ASEAN continuing to urge Myanmar's military government to implement the previously agreed Five-Point Consensus peace plan including ending violence, allowing humanitarian access, and holding inclusive dialogue with all parties.
