Myanmar operates de jure as a unitary assembly-independent republic under its 2008 constitution. On 1 February 2021, Myanmar's military took over the government in a coup. Anti-coup protests are ongoing as of 24 February 2021.
The Tatmadaw is the official name of the armed forces of Myanmar (Burma). It is administered by the Ministry of Defence and composed of the Myanmar Army, the Myanmar Navy and the Myanmar Air Force. Auxiliary services include the Myanmar Police Force, the Border Guard Forces, the Myanmar Coast Guard, and the People's Militia Units.
The Karen National Union is a political organisation with an armed wing, the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), that claims to represent the Karen people of Myanmar (Burma). It operates in mountainous eastern Myanmar, and has underground networks in other areas of Myanmar where Karen people live as a minority group. In the Karen language, this area is called Kawthoolei. Some of the Karen, led primarily by the Karen National Union (KNU), have waged a war against the central government since early 1949. The aim of the KNU at first was independence. Since 1976 the armed group has called for a federal system rather than an independent Karen State.
The Karen National Liberation Army is the military branch of the Karen National Union (KNU), which campaigns for the self-determination of the Karen people of Myanmar. The KNLA has been fighting the Burmese government since 1949. The KNLA was reported to have had a strength of approximately 20,000 in 1980, 3,000 in 2001, 5,000 in 2006, 6,000 in 2012, and 7,000 in 2014. As of early 2021, the KNLA is estimated to have at least 15,000 troops. The army is divided into seven brigades and a 'Special Force' reserved for special operations.
The Myanmar Army is the largest branch of the Armed Forces (Tatmadaw) of Myanmar (Burma) and has the primary responsibility of conducting land-based military operations. The Myanmar Army maintains the second largest active force in Southeast Asia after the People's Army of Vietnam.
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 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.
Myint Swe is a Burmese politician currently serving as Acting President of Myanmar as well as First Vice President. He previously served as the acting president after the resignation of President Htin Kyaw on 21 March 2018, and the chief minister of Yangon Region from 30 March 2011 to 30 March 2016. On 30 March 2016, he was sworn in as the vice president of Myanmar. He is an ethnic Mon ex-military officer in the Myanmar Army with the rank of a lieutenant general.
The Communist Party of Burma (CPB), also known as the Burma Communist Party (BCP), is an underground communist party in Myanmar (Burma). It is the oldest existing political party in the country.
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.
The Karen conflict is an armed conflict in Kayin State, Myanmar. The conflict has been described as one of the world's "longest running civil wars".
The United Nationalities Federal Council is a coalition of five opposition groups in Myanmar. In 2011, the council was formed by 11 opposition groups that campaigns for the rights of various ethnic minorities in Myanmar. Six of the UNFC's members have successfully made or are in the process of making peace negotiations and permanent ceasefire agreements with the government. The group's armed wing is the Federal Union Army (FUA).
The New Mon State Party (NMSP) is an opposition party in Myanmar. Its armed wing, the Mon National Liberation Army (MNLA), has fought the government of Myanmar since 1949, but under different names. The NMSP has attempted many times unsuccessfully to push for constitutional and political reforms through the government sponsored National Convention. NMSP had signed a ceasefire pact with the government in 1995 but the pact turned invalid when the party refused to accept to transform itself into a border guard unit.
The Mon National Liberation Army is a Mon insurgent group in Myanmar (Burma). It is the armed wing of the New Mon State Party (NMSP), and has been fighting government forces since 1949, though under different names. The NMSP signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) on 15 October 2015 with several other insurgent groups and the government of Myanmar.
The communist insurgency in Burma was waged primarily by the Communist Party of Burma and the Communist Party (Burma) from 1948 to 1989. The conflict ended when the CPB, severely weakened by an internal mutiny, disbanded its armed wing.
The Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA), officially the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement between the Government of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar and the Ethnic Armed Organisations, was a landmark ceasefire agreement between the government of Myanmar and representatives of various ethnic insurgent groups, officially known as "ethnic armed organisations" (EAOs) by the government. The draft was agreed upon by a majority of the invited parties on 31 March 2015, and the agreement was signed by President Thein Sein on 15 October 2015. The signing was witnessed by observers and delegates from the United Nations, the United Kingdom, Norway, Japan and the United States. A ceremony is held by the government annually on the anniversary of the signing of the agreement.
The Karen–Mon conflict is a series of armed clashes between the ethnic rebel armies of the Karen and Mon peoples. The Karen National Liberation Army and the Mon National Liberation Army have clashed sporadically since 1988, mostly around the Myanmar–Thailand border at Three Pagodas Pass.
Pe Thein Zar was a Mon student leader, lawyer, revolutionary, and writer who was imprisoned for seven years for his activism. He earned a BA (History) degree from Rangoon University.
The People's Defence Force is the armed wing of the National Unity Government (NUG), a body claiming to be the legitimate government of Myanmar. The armed wing was formed by the National Unity Government with Myanmar youths and pro-democracy activists on 5 May 2021 in response to the coup d'état that occurred on 1 February 2021 and ongoing violence of the junta. Despite having a large amount of support from the people of Myanmar, the military junta designated it as a terrorist organisation on 8 May. In October 2021, the NUG's Ministry of Defence announced it had formed a central committee to coordinate military operations across the country, under a single chain of command.
Government of Myanmar 
Union of Myanmar (until 2011)
