2015 Kokang offensive

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2015 Kokang offensive
Part of Internal conflict in Myanmar
Kokang.svg
Location of the Kokang Self-Administered Zone (green) within Shan State (yellow).
Date9 February 2015 – June 2015
Location
Kokang Self-Administered Zone, Myanmar
Result

Burmese government victory

  • Insurgents fail to capture Laukkai and are forced to flee to China
Territorial
changes		 No territorial changes
Belligerents

Flag of Myanmar.svg  Myanmar

Commanders and leaders
Army Flag of Myanmar.svg Min Aung Hlaing Flag of the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army.svg Pheung Kya-shin
Strength
Unknown Initial 1,000; later 3,000–4,000 total with reinforcements [1]
Casualties and losses
26 killed
59 wounded [2] 		80–90 killed
200+ wounded [2] [3] [4] [5]
~200 killed in total
Over 50,000 civilians displaced

The 2015 Kokang offensive was a series of military operations launched by the Myanmar Army in 2015 in Kokang in northern Shan State, Myanmar (Burma). Several clashes between the Myanmar Army and Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army had taken place from February to May 2015.

Contents

Background

The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) is an insurgent group in Myanmar that was formerly part of the Communist Party of Burma. It became the first of a dozen armed factions to sign a bilateral ceasefire agreement with the then-ruling military junta after its broke apart from the communists in 1989. [6] The Shan State Special Region 1 was created for the group to govern autonomously, and the MNDAA, under the leadership of Pheung Kya-shin, maintained the ceasefire with the government from 1989 to 2009.

The ceasefire was broken in 2009 when the MNDAA came under pressure to transform into a paramilitary Border Guard Force under the control of the Burmese Army. The MNDAA resisted this move, and hostilities from the army increased, purportedly due to MNDAA links with the drug trade. [7] After the 2009 Kokang incident, Pheung himself was driven out by his competitors from within the army and had fled after a warrant was issued for his arrest.[ citation needed ]

In December 2014, he told Chinese state media in an interview that the MNDAA was trying to regain some territories it lost in 2009. [8] [9]

Resurgence

After six years of relative calm, fighting was first reported on 9 February 2015 in Laukkaing Township, Kokang Self-Administered Zone in the northern part of Shan state near Sino-Burmese border. The MNDAA troops, who were trying to retake the Kokang self-administered zone, had attacked Burmese army outposts near the town of Mawhtike on 9 February. Further fighting broke out in Tashwehtan, northwest of Laukkai in the morning of 10 February as Burmese army reinforcements arrived in the region. [6] [7]

According to state-run newspaper, Global New Light of Myanmar, 200 Kokang insurgents, as opposed to government-loyal Kokang units, attacked an army military base in the Konkyan Township and shelled the army headquarters on 12 February. [10] Myanmar government announced state of emergency on 17 February. [11]

The MNDAA's allies, the Arakan Army (AA) and Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) were also fighting alongside the MNDAA. Some sources indicated that the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), United Wa State Army and National Democratic Alliance Army [12] were also involved, but KIA denied its involvement. [7] [8] [13] [14] [15] [16]

After fighting for four months, Myanmar army troops had seized the last stronghold of MNDAA on 14 May 2015. [17] MNDAA declared a unilateral ceasefire on 11 June and Myanmar government offered a peace deal on 22 June 2015. [18] [5]

The MNDAA is thought to be under the command of former leader Pheung Kya-shin, who was ousted from his position by a government-backed Kokang faction in 2009 and has since lived in relative obscurity in China. [16] [19]

Civilians and refugees

The conflict had forced 40,000 to 50,000 civilians to flee their homes and seek shelter on the Chinese side of the border while some 4,500 others had taken refuge in Lashio, Shan State. [10] [19] [20]

A convoy of the Myanmar Red Cross Society, clearly marked with red cross insignia which was carrying its staff and at least two journalists, was attacked by MNDAA troops on 17 February after an aid mission in Laukkai Township. One member of the convoy was killed and another was injured in the attack. [21] [22] But MNDAA spokesperson, Tun Myat Lin, denied the charge. [23]

On 13 March, a bomb hit a sugarcane field in Lincang, China killing four people and wounding nine others with Chinese government demanding a full investigation. [24] [25] Burmese government issued a formal apology to China acknowledging the cross-border bombing. [26] Another five people from Lincang were injured on 14 May. [27] [28]

2015 fighting

At least 30 people died on 6 March 2015. Authorities said Kokang rebels dressed in police uniforms and launched a surprise raid. The clashes are some of the worst to break out in the Kokang region since fighting in 2015 left scores dead.

Child soldiers

It was reported by Reuters in March 2015 that the MNDAA uses child soldiers in the conflict. [29]

Foreign support

Burmese Minister for Information Ye Htut called on Chinese government to rein in any local officials who might be helping the group on their side of the border. [15] According to Military intelligence of Myanmar, MNDAA forces are being supported by unemployed former Chinese soldiers of China's People's Liberation Army recruited as mercenaries. [3] [30] However, Chinese government has stated that it did not give military assistance to MNDAA and TNLA spokesman rejected the assertions by the Burmese government. [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kokang</span> Historically Chinese region in northeastern Myanmar

Kokang is a region in Myanmar. It is located in the northern part of Shan State, with the Salween River to its west, and sharing a border with China's Yunnan Province to the east. Its total land area is around 1,895 square kilometers (732 sq mi). The capital is Laukkai. Kokang is mostly populated by Kokang Chinese, a Han Chinese group living in Myanmar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Myanmar conflict</span> Ongoing insurgencies in Myanmar

Insurgencies have been ongoing in Myanmar since 1948, the year the country, then known as Burma, gained independence from the United Kingdom. The conflict has largely been ethnic-based, with several ethnic armed groups fighting Myanmar's armed forces, the Tatmadaw, for self-determination. Despite numerous ceasefires and the creation of autonomous self-administered zones in 2008, many armed groups continue to call for independence, increased autonomy, or the federalisation of the country. The conflict is the world's longest ongoing civil war, having spanned more than seven decades.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009 Kokang incident</span> Ethnic conflict in Myanmar

The Kokang incident was a violent series of skirmishes that broke out in August 2009 in Kokang in Myanmar's northern Shan State. Several clashes between ethnic minorities and the Burmese military junta forces took place. As a result of the conflict, the MNDAA lost control of the area and as many as 30,000 refugees fled to Yunnan province in neighbouring China.

Laukkai is the capital of Kokang Self-Administered Zone in the northern part of Shan State, Myanmar. It is located east of the Salween River, which forms part of Myanmar's border with the People's Republic of China at its upper reaches. It is about 10 miles (16 km) away from Nansan, China. In Laukkai, Southwestern Mandarin and Chinese characters are widely used, and the Chinese renminbi is in circulation. It is the main town of Laukkaing Township of the Kokang Self-Administered Zone. It is 117 miles (188 km) from Lashio and 42 miles (68 km) from Kongyan. Its population is 23,435. Laukkai is notorious for its gambling, prostitution, human trafficking and online scams.

Pheung Kya-shin was the chairman of the Shan State Special Region No. 1 in Myanmar (Burma) and the leader of the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) from 1989 to 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kokang Self-Administered Zone</span> Self-administered zone in Shan State, Myanmar

The Kokang Self-Administered Zone, as stipulated by the 2008 Constitution of Myanmar, is a self-administered zone in northern Shan State. The zone is intended to be self-administered by the Kokang people. Its official name was announced by decree on 20 August 2010. It is recognized as illegal by the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA).

The 2010–2012 Myanmar border clashes were a series of skirmishes between the Tatmadaw on one side, and the DKBA-5 and the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) on the other. The clashes erupted along the border with Thailand shortly after Myanmar's general election on 7 November 2010. An estimated 10,000 refugees have fled into nearby neighbouring Thailand to escape the violent conflict. There was concern that due to discontent with the elections, and speculations of electoral fraud, that the conflict could escalate into a civil war.

Ceasefires in Myanmar have been heavily utilized by the Burmese government as a policy to contain ethnic rebel groups and create tentative truces. The first ceasefire was arranged by the State Law and Order Restoration Council in 1989, specifically spearheaded by Khin Nyunt, then the Chief of Military Intelligence, with the Kokang-led National Democratic Alliance Army, which had recently split from the Communist Party of Burma due to internal conflicts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kachin conflict</span> Armed conflict in northern Myanmar

The Kachin conflict or the Kachin War is one of the multiple conflicts which are collectively referred to as the internal conflict in Myanmar. Kachin insurgents have been fighting against the Tatmadaw since 1961, with only one major ceasefire being brokered between them, which lasted from 1994 to 2011, a total of 17 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arakan Army</span> Insurgent group active in Rakhine State, Myanmar

The Arakan Army, officially the Arakha Army is an ethnic armed organisation based in Rakhine State (Arakan). Founded on 10 April 2009, the AA is the military wing of the United League of Arakan (ULA). It is currently led by Commander-in-Chief Major General Twan Mrat Naing and vice deputy commander-in-chief Brigadier General Nyo Twan Awng. The Arakan Army states that the objective of its armed revolution is to restore the sovereignty of the Arakan people. In a February 2024 interview, Twan Mrat Naing claimed that the AA had grown to at least 38,000 troops. Anthony Davis, an expert of military and security, rejected this claim and estimated that it has at least 15,000 troops in Chin State and Rakhine State, in addition to around 1500 in Kachin State and Shan State. In the early 2010s, the Arakan Army fought alongside the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) against the Tatmadaw in the Kachin conflict. Following the 2016 outbreak of conflict in Rakhine state, AA became more heavily involved in the Arakan region. In 2019, AA launched attacks on state security forces and the Myanmar Army responded, heightening clashes. The AA reached a ceasefire in late 2020 after eroding the central government's control in northern Rakhine. The power vacuum was filled by the AA over the next 18 months with state-building efforts, like their COVID-19 vaccine rollouts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army</span> Ethnic insurgent group in northern Myanmar

The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) is an armed resistance group in the Kokang region of Myanmar (Burma). The army has existed since 1989, having been the first one to sign a ceasefire agreement with the Burmese government. The ceasefire lasted for about two decades.

Bai Suocheng or Bai Xuoqian is a Kokang politician from Shan State, Myanmar. He was a former deputy commander of the Myanmar Nationalities Democratic Alliance Army who later became the MP of the Amyotha Hluttaw representing Laukkai and first leader of the Kokang Self-Administered Zone. In 2024 he was extradited to China for running online and telephone scam centres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ta'ang National Liberation Army</span> Insurgent group in Shan State, Myanmar

The Ta'ang National Liberation Army in Myanmar (Burma), is the armed wing of the Palaung State Liberation Front (PSLF).

The Muse offensive, also known as the Mong Ko offensive, was a joint military operation by members of the Northern Alliance, consisting of the Arakan Army (AA), the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) and the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA). The groups targeted towns and border posts along the China–Myanmar border in Muse Township, Myanmar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Myanmar civil war (2021–present)</span> Ongoing armed conflict in Myanmar since the 2021 coup detat

The Myanmar civil war, also called the Burmese Spring Revolution, Burmese civil war or People's Defensive War, is an ongoing civil war following Myanmar's long-running insurgencies, which escalated significantly in response to the 2021 military coup d'état and the subsequent violent crackdown on anti-coup protests. The exiled National Unity Government and major ethnic armed organisations repudiated the 2008 Constitution and called instead for a democratic federal state. Besides engaging this rebel alliance, the junta also contends with other anti-junta forces in areas under its control. Hannah Beech of The New York Times observed the insurgents are apportioned into hundreds of armed groups scattered across the country.

The following is a timeline of major events during the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), following the 2021 military coup d'état and protests. It was also a renewed intensity in existing internal conflict in Myanmar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation 1027</span> 2023–2024 anti-junta military operation in Myanmar

Operation 1027 is an ongoing military offensive conducted by the Three Brotherhood Alliance, a military coalition composed of three ethnic armed organisations in Myanmar: the Arakan Army (AA), Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), and Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), allied with other rebel forces in the country, against the Tatmadaw, Myanmar's ruling military junta.

The Three Brotherhood Alliance ;, also known as Brotherhood Alliance, is an alliance between the Arakan Army, Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, and the Ta'ang National Liberation Army formed in June 2019.

Peng Daxun, also known as Peng Deren, is a Burmese Kokang military leader serving as commander of the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) since 2009. He is the son of Pheung Kya-shin, his immediate predecessor as commander of the MNDAA, and has waged a war against the Tatmadaw and government of Myanmar to reclaim control over Kokang.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Laukkai</span> 2023–2024 military offensive in Myanmar

The Battle of Laukkai was a military offensive conducted by the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) encircling and capturing Laukkai, the capital of the Kokang Self-Administered Zone in northeastern Myanmar. The battle was part of the larger Operation 1027, a joint military operation conducted by the Three Brotherhood Alliance coalition of three ethnic armed organisations and part of the overall renewed civil war in Myanmar.

References

  1. ↑ "47 Govt Troops Killed, Tens of Thousands Flee Heavy Fighting in Shan State". irrawaddy.org.
  2. 1 2 "Myanmar says 26 soldiers have been killed in fight with Kokang army". Xinhua News Agency. 19 April 2015. Archived from the original on 22 April 2015.
  3. 1 2 ABC News. "Myanmar Says Kokang Rebels on the Run Despite Allies' Help". ABC News. Archived from the original on 28 March 2022.
  4. ↑ "Situation in Myanmar's Kokang region calm down gradually: officer". GlobalPost. Archived from the original on 22 February 2015. Retrieved 22 February 2015.
  5. 1 2 "Rebels declare 'unilateral ceasefire' with Myanmar army". Mizzima. Archived from the original on 27 September 2015. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  6. 1 2 3 "Myanmar Kokang Rebels Deny Receiving Chinese Weapons". Radio Free Asia.
  7. 1 2 3 NANG MYA NADI (10 February 2015). "Kokang enlist allies' help in fight against Burma army". dvb.no. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 16 February 2015.
  8. 1 2 "Myanmar Army Troops Recover Bodies of 13 Rebels in Renewed Clash". irrawaddy.org.
  9. ↑ "Thousands Reportedly Cross Into China to Flee Fighting, Airstrikes in Shan State". irrawaddy.org.
  10. 1 2 DVB (13 February 2015), "47 Burmese soldiers killed in Kokang conflict: state media", dvb.no, archived from the original on 23 September 2015, retrieved 16 February 2015
  11. ↑ 刘珊珊. "Myanmar announces extension of state of emergency in Kokang region". chinadaily.com.cn.
  12. ↑ Thida Linn. "Military says ethnic groups supplying Kokang rebels". Eleven Myanmar.
  13. ↑ The Myanmar Times. "Ethnic allies join Kokang fight". mmtimes.com.
  14. ↑ Thida Linn. "Military chief discusses clashes with ethnic groups". Eleven Myanmar.
  15. 1 2 AFP. "Myanmar airstrikes hit Kokang rebels". mizzima.com. Archived from the original on 10 March 2015.
  16. 1 2 NANG MYA NADI (16 February 2015). "Burma army claims 26 Kokang rebels killed". dvb.no. Archived from the original on 16 February 2015. Retrieved 16 February 2015.
  17. ↑ "Government troops 'seize last stronghold of Kokang rebels'". Mizzima. Archived from the original on 7 September 2015. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  18. ↑ "Government offers peace deal to Kokang Rebels". Mizzima.
  19. 1 2 "Tens of thousands flee war, airstrikes in Kokang region". DVB Multimedia Group. Archived from the original on 28 March 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  20. ↑ "Thousands Displaced by Kokang Fighting Arrive in Lashio". irrawaddy.org.
  21. ↑ "Red Cross Convoy Ambushed Near Laukkai". The Irrawaddy. 17 February 2015. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  22. ↑ Aid worker dies from Kokang convoy attack wounds | Mizzima
  23. ↑ "Myanmar, Kokang Rebels Trade Accusations Over Red Cross Attack". VOA. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  24. ↑ "China threatens 'decisive' response after Myanmar bombing". Yahoo News Canada. 15 March 2015.
  25. ↑ "Myanmar's Air Force Back in Kokang Amid After Chinese Ire Over Border Bombing". irrawaddy.org.
  26. ↑ Lun Min Maung , Ye Mon (6 April 2015). "Myanmar apologises to China over cross-border bombing". The Myanmar Times. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
  27. ↑ "Chinese villagers injured by Myanmar shell fire". Mizzima.
  28. ↑ "Army Chief blames MNDAA for shelling inside China". Mizzima.
  29. ↑ Stringer China (20 March 2015). "Myanmar's China-backed rebels". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  30. ↑ Post Publishing PCL. "Myanmar points finger in Kokang - Bangkok Post: news". bangkokpost.com.

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