Southeast Asian leaders gathered in the capital of Laos for an annual regional forum that will focus on tackling the prolonged civil war in Myanmar and territorial tensions in the South China Sea

A US delegation led by Secretary of State Antony Blinken will raise concerns with Asian leaders over growing South China Sea tensions and the civil war in Myanmar at a regional summit in Laos.

Southeast Asian leaders met in Laos on Wednesday for a summit expected to find ways of tackling a worsening civil war in Myanmar, with Thailand set to propose a new path for a political solution after a regional peace effort made scant progress.