OCTOBER 8 — Myanmar has reached a strategic impasse.

Neither the military authorities in Naypyidaw nor the numerous armed resistance movements opposing them have demonstrated the ability to produce a durable political settlement.

The country remains trapped in a prolonged conflict in which military advances have not necessarily translated into political legitimacy, while territorial resistance has not produced a coherent alternative national government.

For Asean, this situation demands a fundamental reassessment of its diplomatic approach.

Firm engagement with General Min Aung Hlaing and the Tatmadaw, Myanmar's armed forces, is no longer merely one diplomatic option among many.