Photo : Collected
Rebel Arakan Army denies China brokered ceasefire deal with Myanmar military junta.
Dr Nyo Twan Aung, vice commander-in-chief of the Arakan Army on Monday dismissed the claim of a ceasefire discussion between the AA and Myanmar military junta at an impromptu press conference in an undisclosed place.
The rebel army has taken control of major towns and riverine routes. It has overrun several military garrisons in Rakhine. The Myanmar troops have been able to hold the Rakhine State capital Sittwe stronghold.
Journalists who attended the press conference asked whether the vice commander could confirm the accuracy of the information circulating online, reports Narinjara News.
Dr Aung quipped, “Some of the information is accurate, while some is incorrect. It's a mix of truths, inaccuracies, and personal desires.”
He questioned the motive of the news generated. “We're unsure of the motives behind the dissemination or where the information originates,” he remarked.
The Three Brotherhood Alliance of resistance groups attended China-brokered two-day talks in Kunming on Saturday and Sunday. The two sides agreed to pull their troops back from the frontlines and to ensure that “China’s interests in Myanmar are not harmed,” said a Chinese and Kachin-language statement issued on Monday.
The alliance, includes the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), and the Arakan Army.
Arakan Army supremo said the agenda of the meeting discussed the terms of the Haigeng Agreement, which was violated by both sides.
The meeting discussed how the rebels Alliance can actively work towards strengthening the ceasefire. Which includes addressing issues along the China-Myanmar border and combating online scams.
Plans for border region exits were also being actively considered. The MNDAA and the military have agreed to a 70-30 split of the proceeds from customs at the Chinshwehaw border gate, which fell in the early weeks of Operation 1027.
However, the two sides could not agree on how to share the revenue from the Muse-Ruili border crossing, which handles the lion’s share of the China-Myanmar border trade.
Dr Aung refrained from commenting on the meeting's decisions or the information presented during the discussion. He believes that certain issues should be further discussed.
Regarding any ceasefire agreement, Dr Aung categorically said primarily, the discussions centred on the situation in northern Shan State. In northern Shan State, there has been a ceasefire to some extent since 11 January.
“At this moment, we can only equate the Haigeng Agreement with northern Shan State. We can say that the ceasefire agreement applies solely to northern Shan State. As of now, there is no ceasefire agreement with the AA” for Rakhine State.
Now MNDAA is discussing the Haigeng Agreement. The Haigeng Agreement solely applies to the AA in northern Shan State. The AA in Rakhine State has not been included in the ceasefire agreement.
Therefore, the offensive of the Arakan Army will continue in Rakhine.
The journalists asked the spokesperson if it was heard that in Rakhine State, the military has agreed to the AA's demand for the soldiers to withdraw from all the townships captured by the AA and cease all military operations. The rebel leader said he was not aware of such information.
Dr Aung said that AA will continue discussion on crucial issues with the Three Brotherhood Alliance.
An independent news agency, Myanmar Now, reports that the Myanmar junta acknowledges a follow-up meeting on a ceasefire with Brotherhood Alliance.
While denying that the Myanmar military Tatmadaw had ceded any authority over territory or border trade, a spokesperson said that military officials were again at the negotiating table with powerful ethnic armed organisations in China.
A regime spokesperson admitted that Myanmar junta officials have met in China with Brotherhood Alliance representatives in the past month to review the terms of a truce currently in effect in northern Shan State.
The junta and the Brotherhood Alliance — a tripartite grouping of three ethnic armed groups that initiated a sweeping offensive against the Myanmar military in October 2023 — agreed to the current ceasefire at a previous meeting brokered by the Chinese government in China’s Yunnan Province on 11 January.
Regime-run media quoted Major General Zaw Min Tun, the Myanmar junta’s spokesperson, on Monday as saying the junta is again in talks with the Brotherhood Alliance to discuss the terms for the ongoing truce further.
Zaw Min Tun also thanked the Chinese government for brokering the ceasefire and the subsequent negotiations, adding that the management of border crossings and trade.
Meanwhile, the resistance soldiers of the Arakan Army seized control of a key town Ponnagyun, 33 km northeast of the Rakhine capital Sittwe on Monday, The Irrawaddy newspaper reported.
The ethnic armed group defeated the military junta’s 550th Infantry Battalion in the battle for the town. Sittwe is currently surrounded by AA forces, several residents told the newspaper.
Fierce fighting erupted on Wednesday morning on Taungup-Thandwe highway near Taungup Township of southern Rakhine State between the Arakan Army and junta forces, residents said to the newspaper.
The Three Brotherhood Alliance and junta representatives agreed to a ceasefire in the previous round of talks on 11 January. The truce collapsed a week after the agreement, both sides were accused of violating it in a skirmish.
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