(Translated posts from the KHIAN ZAW’s FACEBOOK pages in April-May 2025.)
As a part of Northern Alliance’s Operation-1027,
TNLA the Palaung Army captured the southern parts of Shan-North including
Thibaw and KyaukMel and NaungCho. From NaungCho they tried to capture the high
hilly lands around TaungKham last year in August.
But Myanmar Army, correctly believing that losing TaungKham will threaten the major cantonment town of Pyin-Oo-Lwin where all three military academies (DSA, DSTA, & DSMA) are situated, fought back bitterly with the reinforcements from the Shan-South and Mandalay. One good luck for Myanmar Army is China’s last-minute intervention in Shan-North by pressuring the Kokang Army (MNDAA) to stop fighting against Myanmar Army.
Now Myanmar Army has only the Palaung Army (TNLA) against them to take back Taung Kham and the all the towns and villages on the road all the way to Lashio. And the town of NaungCho is the first in that way.
Out of three Northern-Alliance Armies, MNDAA is now
being held back by China while AA is busy advancing into the Irrawaddy
Division. So TNLA is facing the advancing Myanmar Army by itself alone and
Myanmar Army Command knew it.
That’s reason for what Myanmar Army is now doing with two Light-Infantry-Divisions (11th and 55th LIDs) and two sub-division-sized Military Operation Commands (MOC-1 and MOC-2) since April-25 after taking TaungKham back from the occupying TNLA troops in March.
April-25,26 Battles Just beyond Taung-Kham
TNLA has been fortifying the highest hill at
Yar-Byin Intersection (the Main Hill) just beyond TaungKham with reinforcements
and the forces withdrawn from the TaungKham area. Across the highway at 600
Mters from the Main Hill is another hill call .1279 which served as the
defending hill against the Myanmar Army’s assault.
On 13:00 on April-26 Myanmar Army’s LIB-212 joined
the assault on TNLA’s Main Hill and captured the Hill on 17:00 that day. Since
the captured Main Hill is much higher than the Hill .1279 and that advantage had
frightened the TNLA troops on that hill and they abandoned the hill.
May-3 Positions of Myanmar Army advancing Towards NaungCho
Commanded by Lt. Colonel Myo Ko Ko Htun and Major
Yan Naing Soe, the Coulmn will follow the TaungKham-NaungCho Road and fnally
reach Mandalay-Lashio National Highway. Its troops had been in TaungKham Area
since last August.
Their mission is to clear
all enemy positions along the TaungKham-NaungCho Road and reach the
Mandalay-Lashio National Highway just before NaungCho Town.
Second War-Column (MelBoke Column): The
combined-troops from LID-11 and MOC-1 and MOC-2 are advancing on the road on
the west bank of the Doat-Hta-Waddy River (Myit-Nghel) towards NaungCho. The Column started from the 354th
Artillery Battalion nearTaungKham.
Commanded by Colonel Aung Si Phyo, Colonel Win
Maung Maung, and Colonel Maung Maung Win, that Column’s mission is to clear all
enemy positions along the West Bank Road following the DoatHtaWaddy River and
reach the Mandalay-Lashio National Highway just before NaungCho Town and link
with the First War Column of LID-11. They had already recaptured NungLin
Village and the five AungBo Hills west of NaungLin.
Two war columns are advancing parallel to each
other and only about five miles apart and both columns are now at only 14 miles
from the NaungCho Town.
China Pressuring TNLA to return Five Captured Towns
Meanwhile China is pressuring the Palaung Army
(TNLA) to transfer the captured towns including NaungCho back to Myanmar Army.
But TNLA is resisting that pressure and declaring that they would defend their
positions on those towns.
China forced TNLA to sit down with Myanmar Army at
China-brokered peace talk at Kunming City in China’s Yunan Province.
Provisional Governeor of China’s Myanmar Deng Deng Xijun basically chaired the
peace talk meeting between TNLA delegation led by The TNLA delegation led by
Lieutenant General Tarr Jode Jarr and Myanmar Army side led by Lieutenant
General Ko Ko Oo, Myanmar Army’s BSO-3 commander.
The Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) said
that Chinese-brokered talks with Myanmar’s military have broken down over Myanmar
Army’s demands that the TNLA withdraw from five towns in northern Shan State
that it captured last year.
During the meeting, held in China’s Yunnan Province
on April 28 and 29, the TNLA was told that it would have to pull out of the
five towns—Kyaukme, NaungCho, Moemait, Mogoke, and Thibaw—as a condition of any
deal. “The negotiation ended as we are unable to comply with their demand,” a
spokesperson from TNLA stated on Friday, adding that another meeting would be
held at the end of August.
