Leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have agreed on the need for an immediate cessation of the violence in Myanmar after an emergency meeting in Jakarta on Saturday.

"It's beyond our expectations," Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin told reporters after the leaders' meeting of the ASEAN that was also attended by Min Aung Hlaing, Myanmar's senior general.

ASEAN leaders wanted a commitment from Min Aung Hlaing to restrain his security forces that an activist monitoring group says have killed 745 people since a mass civil protest erupted to challenge his February 1 military takeover.