Nov. 8 marked the third anniversary of elections in Myanmar, whose results were overturned by a military coup on Feb. 1, 2021. The coup set in motion some of the largest, most diverse protests in the country’s history, which subsequently led to a brutal crackdown on pro-democracy activists. Today, the junta is prosecuting a war of terror, marked by airstrikes against civilians, the blocking of humanitarian aid to the...

Fragility & Resilience;  Conflict Analysis & Prevention

A surprise offensive by Myanmar ethnic armed groups has blocked two strategically vital roads to the country's biggest trading partner China, choking cross-border commerce and denying the cash-strapped junta taxes and foreign exchange. Fighting has raged across northern Shan state for two weeks, displacing almost 50,000 people, according to the United Nations, and posing the most serious military challenge to...

Fragility & Resilience;  Conflict Analysis & Prevention

About 90,000 people have been displaced in Myanmar due to the intensifying conflict between the country’s military rulers and an alliance of ethnic armed groups, the United Nations said. “As of 9 November, almost 50,000 people in northern Shan were forced into displacement,” the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in an update on Friday. A further 40,000 people have been...

Fragility & Resilience;  Conflict Analysis & Prevention

A rebel alliance has overrun parts of northern Myanmar, including areas bordering China, with resistance to the military junta notching its most significant win since the 2021 coup, according to a rebel commander, diplomats and analysts. The fiercest fighting has been near Myanmar's border with China in northern Shan state where three powerful ethnic armed groups have combined to lead an...

Fragility & Resilience;  Conflict Analysis & Prevention

It was a stark admission from Myanmar’s military regime, now nearly three years into a nationwide civil war triggered by its February 2021 putsch of the country’s democratically elected government. On November 1, junta spokesman Zaw Min Tun conceded that rebels had taken full control of Chinshwehaw, a key town on the border with the country’s largest trade partner, China. In a statement, he said...

Fragility & Resilience

A Chinese official yesterday called on Myanmar’s military administration to “cooperate” with China to maintain stability along their common border, amid continued gains by resistance groups in northern Shan State. The armed offensive launched by the Three Brotherhood Alliance on October 27 has disrupted trade with China and displaced tens of thousands of civilians, some of whom have sought refuge...

Myanmar’s military is facing its biggest military challenge since it seized power in a coup more than two years ago, after an alliance of opponents cut off key trading routes and seized towns and dozens of outposts near the Chinese border. The offensive in northern Shan state, which was launched by an alliance of ethnic armed groups in coordination with newer anti-coup groups, is a significant blow for the military, analysts say, and could be exploited by the...

Fragility & Resilience

It’s called “pig butchering.” Armies of scammers operating from lawless corners of Southeast Asia—often controlled by Chinese crime bosses—connect with people all over the world through online messages. They foster elaborate, sometimes romantic, relationships, and then coax their targets into making bogus investments. Over time, they make it appear that the investments are growing to get victims to send more money. Then, they disappear. In recent months, China has unleashed its...

Human Rights;  Democracy & Governance