Myanmar president to include Aung San Suu Kyi in his Cabinet

NAYPYITAW, Myanmar — Myanmar’s president-elect on Tuesday proposed an 18-member Cabinet that will include party leader Aung San Suu Kyi, the former dissident who for decades had campaigned for a democratically elected government to replace the country’s military junta.

President-elect Htin Kyaw submitted the list of the names to the parliament for formal approval. The Cabinet positions of the ministers will be decided later.

Notable, and top on the list is Suu Kyi, who was not able to become president because of a constitutional block, even though she led her party to a landslide win in general elections last November.

READ: Suu Kyi loyalist and friend elected Myanmar’s president

The names will be reviewed by the parliament and the speaker of the parliament will ask the legislators on Wednesday to approve the names. If any lawmaker disagrees with a name, it will be reviewed.

It was widely rumored that Suu Kyi will become the foreign minister, but that’s far from certain because if she were to take that post she would have to give up her parliament seat and end party activities.

“I doubt that Aung San Suu Kyi would take the position of the foreign minister,” said Toe Kyaw Hlaign, a political analyst. “Also, working as a foreign minister requires a lot of time traveling around the world. She will have to do a lot of international relations and overseas trips, and she won’t have the time to exercise control over the government,” he told The Associated Press.

Suu Kyi has said in the past that she will be “above the president” and indirectly govern the country from behind the scenes.