BBC Photo: Insurgents Seized Kyaukme After Months of Fierce Fighting, last year
Source: BBC News
DST News: After months of fierce resistance, Myanmar’s military junta is regaining territory lost to ethnic insurgents — thanks to intensified air assaults and growing support from China.
The town of Kyaukme, strategically located on the historic Burma Road (now Asian Highway 14), had been captured last year by the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) after protracted battles. Its fall had symbolized a major blow to the junta and a morale boost for the opposition. But this month, the military recaptured Kyaukme in just three weeks, underscoring a dramatic shift in the war’s momentum.
Large portions of the town were reduced to rubble by daily air raids and artillery fire as the army fought to reclaim control. Thousands fled amid bombings by Chinese- and Russian-supplied aircraft, which dropped 500-pound bombs on TNLA positions. “The military now has more soldiers, more weapons, and much greater air power,” TNLA spokesman Tar Parn La told the BBC. The junta has since recaptured Hsipaw, another key town near the Chinese border, restoring full control over the major trade route.
China’s Growing Role and the Push for Elections
Analysts say China’s backing has been decisive. Beijing has thrown its weight behind the junta’s plan to hold a December election, widely condemned as illegitimate for excluding Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy and amid widespread conflict. To secure voting zones, the junta has launched aggressive offensives to reclaim rebel-held areas, bolstered by new technologies and weapons from China.
The army has imported thousands of Chinese-made combat drones and trained troops to use them with lethal precision. It has also introduced motorised paragliders to deliver targeted bomb strikes over poorly defended zones, resulting in soaring civilian deaths — estimated at over 1,000 so far this year.
Fragmented Resistance Losing Ground
While the junta grows stronger, Myanmar’s opposition remains deeply divided. The anti-coup resistance is made up of numerous People’s Defence Forces (PDFs) — loosely organised local militias with varying agendas — alongside ethnic armed groups long at odds with the central government. Lacking unified command, coordination, and resources, they have struggled to counter the junta’s renewed power.
From “Operation 1027” to Reversal of Fortune
The insurgents’ most significant success came in late 2023 with Operation 1027, when the Brotherhood Alliance — comprising the TNLA, the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), and the Arakan Army — launched a coordinated offensive that captured around 180 military outposts in Shan State and pushed toward Mandalay. For a time, the military appeared on the verge of collapse.
Now, less than two years later, the tide has turned. Backed by Chinese supplies, improved strategy, and overwhelming air superiority, the junta is reclaiming territory — at a devastating human cost. Entire communities lie in ruins, civilians are fleeing bombarded towns, and Myanmar’s civil war — once thought to be nearing a turning point — has entered a new, bloodier phase.
