MAE SOT, Thailand (AP) — that of Thailand the foreign minister said on Friday that he had urged from Myanmar military authorities not to react violently to his army’s loss of a major border trading town to his opponents, and that so far they appeared to be showing restraint.
Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara ” spoke during a visit to Mae Sot, which lies just across a river from Myawaddy in Myanmar, where army troops abandoned their last defensive position early Thursday.
Their hasty flight ceded virtual control of the bustling trading city to Karen National Union guerrillas and its allies, including members of the pro-democracy People’s Defense Forces.
A Thai military soldier stands guard along the Moei River on the Thai side under the 2nd Thailand-Myanmar Friendship Bridge in Mae Sot, Thailand’s Tak province, Friday, April 12, 2024. Minister Thai Foreign Affairs said it had urged Myanmar’s military authorities not to resort to violence. reacting to its army’s loss of an important border trading town to its adversaries, and that so far it seemed to be showing restraint. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Myanmar’s once-powerful armed forces have suffered an unprecedented series of defeats since last October, losing swaths of territory, including border posts, to ethnic fighters and guerrilla units. Civilians took up arms after the generals took power in 2021 from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. The military often responded heavily, using air power.
Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, a spokesman for Myanmar’s military government, told the BBC’s Burmese language service on Thursday evening that soldiers at the army’s last base outside the town of Myawaddy had abandoned the post for the safety of their families who lived with them. He said Myanmar was in talks with Thailand to return them safely and acknowledged that Karen guerrillas were inside the city.
There are fears that Myanmar’s military could launch a concerted counterattack on Myawaddy, which could send thousands fleeing to Thailand for safety and seriously disrupt border trade.
Speaking to reporters after inspecting the area, Foreign Minister Parnpree said Thailand had already spoken with the Myanmar military and told them it did not want to see violence, thus offering assistance from Thailand.
“Now what concerns us most is that we want to see peace in Myawaddy, not only because of trade, but also because of our neighbor,” he said. “We do not want any violence. If talks are possible between their groups, we will be very happy about that, and if they want us to be the mediator, we are ready to help coordinate.”
He said he hoped there could be talks between the opposing sides to prevent retaliatory attacks.
“We have already sent people to talk to them. And regarding today’s situation, they have already said that there will be no violent retaliation yet. If they wanted to be violent, they would have already made a few days ago.”
However, on Friday evening, at least two loud explosions took place from the area on the Burmese side of one of the two bridges connecting Myawaddy and Mae Sot. Their cause could not be immediately discovered.
Residents on both sides of the river said earlier that there had been frequent explosions in recent days following airstrikes on captured positions outside the town of Myawaddy, but that Friday was calm. Thai immigration officials said the number of visitors from Myanmar was not exceptional.
But for some, the problem was calm. A Myawaddy resident who gave his name only as Sulai told The Associated Press that it upset him and he ran away.
“They’re afraid of quiet. They’re afraid of silence without the sound of fighting. Those with experience say that means the fighting is much more likely to continue,” he said.
Thai troops were monitoring Mae Sot on Friday, particularly near the bridges. In addition to reassuring residents of their safety, they served to prevent pockets of trapped Burmese soldiers from crossing the border.
On the Myanmar side, a small group of men basked in the stifling heat. Thai troops said they were from the Border Guard Force, a Karen group aligned with the Myanmar military that recently severed ties.
The Karen National Union – the main political body of the Karen ethnic minority – said in a statement on its Facebook page on Friday that it would establish administrative mechanisms, prevent illicit businesses, smuggling and human trafficking, implement stability and law enforcement and would facilitate trade in the Myawaddy region when it secures its position there.
The KNU expressed deep concern for the safety of people living on both sides of the border, seeks to ensure stability and access to humanitarian assistance and strives to achieve meaningful cooperation with the Thai government and local and international partner organizations.
The Karen, originally from the eastern state of Kayin, have been fighting for greater autonomy from Myanmar’s central government for more than seven decades. A broader struggle including other ethnic minority groups and pro-democracy activists began after the military took power in 2021.
Karens make up a large portion of the estimated 90,000 refugees from Myanmar living in nine long-term refugee camps in Thailand after fleeing previous fighting.
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The military’s setbacks in recent months have been noticed by Myanmar’s neighbors, who have generally been reluctant to intervene in the crisis, said Moe Thuzar, a Myanmar scholar and senior fellow at Singapore’s ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute.
“We have already heard the Thai Prime Minister acknowledge that the Myanmar army is losing strength. How the different opposition forces will coordinate and consolidate these gains towards the declared objectives of the resistance for the political future of the country is not yet clear,” she told The Associated. Tap in an email. “It is also unclear how neighboring capitals will react or respond to the implications of the change in fiscal and administrative control of these border crossings.”
