"The National Unity Government of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar has recently taken note of plans of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Forum to convene the 7th LMC Foreign Minister’s Meeting in Myanmar in July of this year. The NUG would like to voice its continued commitment to the principles of the Sanya Declaration of the first leader’s meeting of the LMC, and particularly the "commitment to peace, stability and sustainable development and prosperity of the sub-region," the “spirit of openness and inclusiveness,” and the LMC’s dedication to advancing the priority areas of ASEAN Community building. In respect of the above principles, and the NUG’s desire to continue sustained progress towards the 26 measures outlined in the Sanya Declaration, the NUG respectfully requests that China, as the permanent joint-chair of the LMC platform considers the following points: (1) The Myanmar army is a criminal organization that has no interest in peace or sustainable development in Myanmar; its self-styled State Administrative Council is illegal, cannot he considered a legitimate government, and should be barred from any and all involvement in the LMC. For the past 1 7 months, the Myanmar army has waged a horrific military campaign against the people of Myanmar, including Myanmar’s civilian government, the country’s labor unions, teachers, medical professionals, ordinary civilians and the country’s ethnic armed organizations. It is directly responsible for the displacement of over 700,000 people across the country since launching this attack in February of 2021. As the recent report of the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights indicates, this includes over 250,000 children, with an additional 1,400 children arbitrarily detained by the junta. In addition, the military has tortured over 142 children since the coup, and deprived 7.8 million more children of access to education. (2) Any effort to convene an LMC Foreign Minister’s Meeting in partnership with the Myanmar military or its illegal military junta violates the will o f the Myanmar people, and undermines community building in Myanmar. For the past year, ASEAN has determined that a non-political representative should attend Foreign Minister’s meetings and Leader’s meetings. This included the ASEAN-China Special Summit to Commemorate the 30th Anniversary of ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations held in November of 2021. As ASEAN has determined not to invite senior representatives of the military junta to Foreign Minister’s meetings or Leader’s meetings, such a move on the part of the LMC runs directly counter to ASEAN's decision, posing a grave threat to ASEAN 's community building efforts. No ASEAN states should participate in any LMC FM meeting involving the Myanmar’s illegitimate military junta (3) As the legitimate representative o f the government o f the Republic o f the Union o f Myanmar, the NUG stands ready to take on all responsibilities o f Myanmar with respect to the LMC and the joint-chair role. The NUG's Ministry of Foreign Affairs is ready to meet with its counterparts in China and other LMC countries to discuss the convening of the Foreign Minister’s meeting. The NUG further suggests that the 7th Foreign Minister’s meeting focus exclusively on the political and security pillar, and welcomes the assistance of the LMC countries in developing an action plan to end the regional security crisis triggered by the military’s ongoing crimes against humanity. Such a plan should be aligned with the principles of the Sanya Declaration, taking into consideration the 3+5 Cooperation Framework. (4) The NUG expresses concern strong concern that the military has begun to weaponize Chinese investments and assets in country by deploying troops inside company campuses and or project sites. The military’s intention is to use Chinese investments as a shield or "safe space" from which they can launch attacks on communities. By permitting troops to be based on their project sites, Chinese companies are increasingly perceived by local groups as aiding and abetting the enemy of the people. This is making it more difficult for the NUG and PDFs to ensure the security of Chinese investments projects. The best means for the Chinese government to ensure the safety and security of its assets is to avoid them being used by the military. Under such circumstances, it will be easier for the NUG and PDFs to protect Chinese assets, interests and workers in the country. (5) The NUG requests that all LMC member countries immediately cease all participation in any activities o f the Integrated Law Enforcement and Security Cooperation Center o f the Lancang-Mekong Region that involve the Myanmar military. The Myanmar military is deeply involved in and responsible for a massive incursion of transnational crime into the Lancang-Mekong region, especially at Shwe Kokko along the Thai-Myanmar border. Before the military’s attempted coup, with China's assistance, this activity was brought under control. Just weeks after the coup, transnational criminals resumed and dramatically scaled up their cross-border crimes to the benefit of the military and its aligned border guard force militias. The NUG suggests that the LMLECC immediately establish an investigatory mechanism to hold the criminal networks, the Myanmar army and its aligned militias accountable for this growing security threat to the region. In closing, the NUG recognizes the positive role that the LMC could potentially play in addressing the ongoing crisis in Myanmar should it respect its founding values and commitment to peace. The NUG stands ready to partner with its counterparts across the LMC, and further requests that the ASEAN Secretary General and the United Nations General Secretary offer their support to China to ensure that the LMC plays a positive role in advancing the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and contributes to the efforts of ASEAN to resolve the Myanmar crisis..."