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SINGAPORE - Singapore will represent the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) at a UN Security Council meeting on developments in Myanmar.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon telephoned Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong to invite Singapore to make a statement at the meeting in its capacity as current chair of ASEAN, of which Myanmar is a member.
Mr Ban also thanked Mr Lee for Singapore's support for the recent mission of UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari to Myanmar following a government crackdown on protesters in which at least 13 people were killed.
"As ASEAN alone would not have enough leverage, Mr Lee also stressed the need for the other powers to weigh in and give their full backing to Mr Gambari and the UN," Singapore said in a statement.
"In this regard, Mr Lee has written to the leaders of China, India and Japan to convey these views, and to encourage them to work together with ASEAN and the UN to help the parties in Myanmar find a way forward for national reconciliation."
The UN chief updated Mr Lee on the outcome of Mr Gambari's visit, during which he met Myanmar government leaders and democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, "and the next steps forward," Singapore said in a statement.
Mr Gambari used Singapore as a staging point for his four-day trip to the reclusive military-ruled Myanmar.
He returned to Singapore late Tuesday and flew to New York the following day to report to Mr Ban and the security council.
Singapore Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew warned in remarks published Friday that Myanmar is a ticking "time bomb" for Southeast Asia which the region must help defuse.
"ASEAN leaders know if the situation in Myanmar deteriorates... there will come a breaking point when much more brutal force will be used to put their people down," said Minister Mentor Lee.
"So it is in the best interest of every country in ASEAN to help stabilise Myanmar."
Apart from Myanmar and Singapore, the ASEAN bloc also covers Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. - AFP/ir
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