Anwar Ibrahim says direct engagement with Myanmar is needed to advance the return of refugees
By ARAKAN JOURNAL – September 18, 2026
KUALA LUMPUR, September 17, 2026 — Malaysia has offered to invite Myanmar President Min Aung Hlaing for an official visit as part of efforts to accelerate the repatriation of Rohingya refugees and other Myanmar nationals, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said on Wednesday.
Anwar said the proposed visit would provide an opportunity for Malaysia to negotiate directly with Myanmar over the return of refugees currently living in Malaysia.
“I invited him to say we can be friends, we can trade, we can accept Myanmar, but Myanmar must accept them back,” Anwar said in a podcast, according to Reuters, whose report was published by Al Jazeera.
Anwar said Malaysia needed a different diplomatic approach to address the refugee issue, arguing that direct engagement was necessary to reach an agreement with Myanmar.
“To me, that’s better diplomacy than just shouting angrily at Myanmar,” he said, according to the report. He also questioned who Malaysia could negotiate with if it maintained no direct relations with Myanmar in line with ASEAN’s position.
The proposed invitation comes as Malaysia prepares for the first phase of a voluntary repatriation programme involving Myanmar nationals. Malaysia’s Home Ministry said 1,476 eligible people who agreed to return voluntarily are scheduled to be repatriated on September 29. The first group is part of a broader programme involving 5,000 Myanmar refugees.
The Malaysian government has said the repatriation programme will be carried out according to procedures agreed with Myanmar and that diplomatic negotiations will continue to ensure the process is conducted in an orderly and dignified manner.
Anwar announced in July that Myanmar had agreed to receive 5,000 Rohingya. Malaysia hosts more than 126,000 Rohingya refugees from Myanmar, according to the Reuters report published by Al Jazeera. Malaysia is not a signatory to the 1951 UN Refugee Convention and does not formally recognize refugee status.
If Min Aung Hlaing accepts the invitation, Malaysia would become another ASEAN country he has visited since taking power in the 2021 military coup. Reuters reported that he has previously travelled to Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam, as well as China, India and Russia.
ASEAN has continued to exclude Myanmar’s military leadership from its high-level summits following the 2021 coup. The regional bloc has also rejected the military’s election process, according to Reuters.
Myanmar’s prolonged conflict has displaced millions of people. The military has faced allegations of serious abuses against civilians, including the Rohingya, allegations it has denied.
For the Rohingya, any return to Myanmar remains closely connected to questions of safety, citizenship, freedom of movement, security and access to basic rights.
Malaysia’s planned repatriation programme therefore comes amid continuing debate over whether conditions in Myanmar are suitable for refugees to return safely and voluntarily.
Sources Al Jazeera / Reuters, September 16, 2026
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