Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen has reportedly criticized the Malaysian for being "arrogant" and impolite, after Malaysia’s top diplomat voiced concern about Hun Sen’s controversial meeting with Myanmar's junta on January 7-8, according to Reuters.

Malaysia's Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah last week said some Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) members had reservations about Hun Sen's visit to Myanmar while chair of the bloc, which risked being interpreted as ASEAN recognition of the generals.

Saifuddin suggested Hun Sen should have sought input from ASEAN counterparts beforehand, the report says.

According to a readout of the conversation provided to media by Cambodian state broadcaster TVK, Hun Sen in a phone call on Friday with Indonesian President Joko Widodo defended his Myanmar trip and rebuked Saifuddin.

A number of representatives of ASEAN publicly and privately voiced concern over Hun Sen’s “lone cowboy” visit to Naypyitaw – a visit initiated before Cambodia took up the ASEAN chair – with concerns voiced that the visit appeared to help support the standing of the Myanmar junta leader Min Aung Hlaing – previously blocked from attending an ASEAN meeting in October 2021.

Hun Sen has said his visit was aimed at encouraging peace in Myanmar, which has been wracked by protest and conflict since the February 2021 military coup.