Quad ministers want democracy restored in Myanmar: US

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

ANKARA (AA) - The US, along with Australia, India and Japan, demanded an "urgent" return to democracy in Myanmar on Thursday after the military seized power.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinked and ministers from the group of Indo-Pacific countries known as the Quad group discussed the Myanmar issue during a virtual meeting where they emphasized the importance of restoring the democratically elected government and "the priority of strengthening democratic resilience in the broader region," State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement.

The Quad ministers included Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne, Indian Minister of External Affairs Dr. S. Jaishankar and Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi.

Myanmar's military declared a state of emergency Feb. 1, hours after detaining de facto leader and State Counsellor Suu Kyi and senior members of the ruling National League for Democracy (NLD).

The coup took place hours before the first session of the country's new parliament was set to convene following elections in November, in which the NLD made sweeping gains.

The military claimed the coup was staged due to "election fraud" at the polls that it said resulted in the dominance of the NLD in parliament.

The Quad ministers also talked about countering disinformation, counterterrorism, maritime security, COVID-19 and climate change.

They reaffirmed mutual support for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) centrality, said Price.

And they voiced a commitment to at least an annually Quad meeting at the ministerial level and regularly at senior levels "to strengthen cooperation on advancing a free and open Indo-Pacific region, including support for freedom of navigation and territorial integrity."