BANGKOK: Myanmar's ex-military chief Min Aung Hlaing arrived in Bangkok on Thursday (Aug 6) for his first visit to Thailand as civilian leader, as he seeks a return to the diplomatic fold for his country.

As a general, he led a 2021 military coup that ousted democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi, triggering a civil war estimated to have killed more than 100,000 people on all sides.

He was installed as Myanmar's leader in April following elections that democracy watchdogs and Western nations called a sham intended to launder the military government's image.

Neighbouring Thailand has since been leading an effort to normalise relations with Myanmar, both bilaterally and through the 11-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

The bloc has excluded Myanmar's leadership from high-level summits since the putsch, but its foreign minister attended an informal meeting with his regional counterparts last month in Bangkok.

And Min Aung Hlaing has been on a diplomatic drive since swapping his military uniform for civilian dress, visiting India, key ally China, and ASEAN member Laos in turn.

In the run-up to his Bangkok trip, Aung San Suu Kyi - who remains under house arrest - was allowed to meet a representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross on Monday, the first time she has been seen meeting a foreign official since her ouster.

If Myanmar was invited back to ASEAN, it would open "a pathway for normalisation of relations with others, including western countries that hav...