Myanmar expels top East Timor diplomat

BANGKOK: Myanmar´s junta on Sunday ordered the expulsion of East Timor´s top diplomat in the country over a meeting his government held with a banned shadow administration.

The Southeast Asian nation has been locked in crisis since the military seized power in February 2021, ending a brief experiment with democracy and sparking violent clashes.

The military has designated the shadow administration known as the National Unity Government (NUG) -- dominated by exiled lawmakers working overseas to overturn the coup -- as a terror organisation.

Last month, East Timor´s President Jose Ramos-Horta met with NUG foreign minister Zin Mar Aung in the capital Dili. On Sunday, Myanmar´s ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the “irresponsible actions” of East Timor, ordering the country´s Charge d´Affaires in Yangon “to leave no later than 1 September 2023”.

The ministry said in a Facebook post that East Timor was “encouraging the terrorist group to further committing their violations in Myanmar”. East Timor condemned the expulsion order, reiterating in a statement “the importance of supporting all efforts for the return of democratic order in Myanmar”.