Myanmar violence in the spotlight

All set: A motorist riding past a sign of the Asean foreign ministers’ meeting in Jakarta. Myanmar’s prolonged civil strife, tensions in the disputed South China Sea and concern over arms build-ups in the region are expected to dominate the agenda. — AP

Myanmar’s prolonged civil strife, tensions in the disputed South China Sea and concern over arms build-ups in the region are expected to dominate the agenda when South-East Asia’s top diplomats gather for talks this week in Indonesia.

Russia’s year-old invasion of Ukraine and the US-China rivalry will also be under the spotlight as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang participate as dialogue partners of the Association of South-East Asian Nations foreign ministers in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta.