BANGKOK — Myanmar’s military government has acknowledged that it withdrew its forces from a key city on the northeastern border with China after it was taken over by an alliance of ethnic armed groups it has been battling for months.
The Three Brotherhood Alliance took control of Laukkaing late Thursday after Myanmar military forces laid down their arms and were allowed to withdraw, both sides said Saturday.
Photos and videos on social media showed a vast amount of weapons that the alliance claimed to have captured.
Laukkaing is the capital of the Kokang Self-Administered Zone, which is geographically part of northern Shan state in Myanmar.
The Three Brotherhood Alliance is comprised of the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, the Ta’ang National Liberation Army and the Arakan Army. The MNDAA is a military force of the Kokang minority, who are ethnic Chinese.
The capture of the city was a primary goal of the alliance’s offensive launched on Oct. 27.
Myanmar government spokesperson Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun told the Popular News Journal, a pro-army website, on Saturday that the military and its local commanders relinquished control of Laukkaing after considering many aspects, including the safety of the family members of the soldiers stationed there.
This photo provided by Kyaw Ko Lin shows a view of Laukkaing city in Shan state, Myanmar, Nov. 20, 2023. An alliance of ethnic armed groups in northeastern Myanmar has reportedly achieved one of the main goals it set when it launched an offensive last October by taking control of Laukkaing, a key city on the border with China, according to local residents and independent media accounts on Friday Jan. 5, 2024. Credit: AP/Kyaw Ko Lin
He said the military also took into consideration Myanmar’s relationship with China, which is just across the border from Laukkaing. China, which has good relations with both the military and the ethnic alliance, has been seeking an end to the fighting.
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