Myanmar Junta Claims Strategic Northern Route Retaken After Year-Long Offensive
Yangon- Myanmar’s military said on Thursday it had recaptured a key northern transport corridor linking the central city of Mandalay to the Chinese border after more than a year of fighting, marking a significant claimed advance against rebel forces in the country’s civil war.
In a statement, the office of Commander-in-Chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing said government troops had defeated what it described as “terrorist insurgent groups” along the route connecting Mandalay with Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin state located near China’s border.
The military said operations to secure the corridor lasted more than 15 months and involved 322 engagements ranging from small clashes to major battles.“The operations lasted for over one year and three months,” the statement said, adding that the bodies of 138 rebel fighters had been recovered.
The military acknowledged casualties among its own troops but did not provide figures.Myanmar has remained engulfed in conflict since the military overthrew the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in a February 2021 coup, triggering nationwide resistance from pro-democracy militias and ethnic armed organizations.
A coordinated rebel offensive launched in late 2023 had initially pushed military forces back across large areas of northern Myanmar and threatened territory closer to Mandalay, the country’s second-largest city and a key commercial center.
Analysts have said some ethnic armed groups operating near the Chinese border previously benefited from tacit Chinese support aimed at preserving Beijing’s influence in the frontier region. However, China later pressed several rebel factions into ceasefire arrangements amid concerns that escalating instability could disrupt cross-border trade and investment.
In recent months, two of the three ethnic minority armies that spearheaded the offensive agreed to China-mediated truces, leaving allied pro-democracy fighters increasingly isolated and under pressure from military counteroffensives.
The recapture claim comes as Myanmar’s military-backed administration seeks to project greater political stability following elections earlier this year that delivered victory to parties aligned with the junta.Last month, coup leader Min Aung Hlaing formally assumed the presidency in a transition that democracy groups and international observers criticized as an attempt to legitimize continued military rule.
The government has also intensified efforts to deepen economic ties with China, including reviving stalled infrastructure and energy projects linked to Beijing’s regional investment strategy.The military said the reopening of the Mandalay-Myitkyina corridor would improve regional commerce and facilitate smoother trade flows with China.
