YANGON — Myanmar's outgoing president scrapped his planned trip to the US-Asean summit in California so that he could oversee the handover of power to the new government of Aung San Suu Kyi, according to a presidential spokesman.
"The president decided not to attend the meeting because this is a transition period. The transition process needs to be stable and smooth, so he thinks he should take care of it," Zaw Htay, director of the president's office, told AFP.
Suu Kyi and hundreds of newly elected MPs from her National League for Democracy party (NLD) took their seats in parliament two weeks ago after the party's landslide election victory in November.
But what observers said was a surprisingly smooth initial phase of the political transition has since been clouded by rumours and speculation — especially over who will succeed Thein Sein as president.
President Thein Sein walks past opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi at the opening of the Union Peace Conference in Nay Pyi Daw on Jan 12.
The wildly popular democracy icon Suu Kyi is barred from the post by a charter penned by the military that kept her under house arrest for 15 years. The constitution also reserves a quarter of parliamentary seats for appointed military officers, handing the army an effective veto on charter change.
With the NLD-dominated parliament putting off presidential nominations until late March, rumours have swirled that the party is engaged in backroom talks in a bid to amend the charter and pave the way for a Suu Kyi presidency.
The delicacy of the transition was underscored by Thein Sein's last-minute decision to cancel the California trip, seen as his final chance to cement a legacy on the global stage as the reformist leader who guided Myanmar out of five decades of repressive junta rule.
Vice President Nyan Tun will now attend the summit on Monday and Tuesday at the Sunnylands estate in California, the president's office said.
The Sunnylands gathering comes as Washington is striving to bolster its influence in Southeast Asia as a counterpoint to China's rising power in the region.