The Vice Chief of the Australian Defence Force, Vice Admiral David Johnston AO RAN, spoke for the second time with the Deputy Commander-in Chief of the Myanmar military, Vice Senior General Soe Win, on 16 June.

Vice Admiral Johnston expressed Australia’s deep concern at the situation in Myanmar and reiterated Australia’s call for the immediate release of Professor Sean Turnell. Vice Admiral Johnston underlined the very high priority that Australia attaches to Professor Turnell’s release, and made a range of requests regarding his circumstances.

Vice Admiral Johnston urged Myanmar’s military authorities to refrain from violence against civilians, restore democracy as soon as possible, immediately release all those arbitrarily detained since 1 February, and allow greater access for humanitarian assistance to be delivered to people in need.

Vice Admiral Johnston also underlined the importance of, and Australia’s support for, ASEAN’s diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis. He urged the Myanmar regime to engage constructively with this process and to implement the five consensus points as soon as possible.