NAYPYITAW, 17 October 2021, (TON): Myanmar's junta chief will be excluded from an upcoming Asean summit, the group said yesterday, a rare rebuke as concerns rise over the military government's commitment to defusing a bloody crisis.

Foreign ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations agreed at an emergency meeting that a "non-political representative" for Myanmar be invited to the October 26-28 summit, current Asean chair Brunei said in a statement.

The decision effectively excluded junta leader Min Aung Hlaing.

The bloc, widely criticised as a toothless organisation, took a strong stand after the junta rebuffed requests for a special envoy to meet with all parties concerned -- a phrase seen to include ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

The statement noted "insufficient progress" in the implementation of a five-point plan agreed by Asean leaders in April to end turmoil following a coup in February.

It also said that the situation in Myanmar "was having an impact on regional security as well as the unity, credibility and centrality of Asean".