Malaysia has appointed a new ASEAN special envoy to Myanmar to try and implement the regional bloc’s stalled peace plan for the war-torn country.

Southeast Asian nations told Myanmar's military government on Sunday its plan to hold an election amid an escalating civil war should not be its priority, urging the junta to start dialogue and end hostilities immediately.

ASEAN is progressing cautiously on Myanmar as it is critical to secure peace in the country, said Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. He

The bloc says that any poll must be “inclusive,” but it has limited power to deter the junta from its election plans.

The regional bloc told a junta representative at a meeting that a poll is “not a priority at the moment," Malaysia’s foreign minister said.