Myanmar military steps up fight for rare earth area and border routes
The push targets border trade corridors and rare earth mining belts that produce roughly half of the world’s heavy rare earths, analysts said.
- On Monday, May 25, 2026, Myanmar's military launched renewed offensives into border regions targeting rare earth deposits and vital trade routes, led by new military chief Ye Win Oo seeking to reclaim strategic strongholds.
- Since the 2021 coup ousted Myanmar's civilian government, the military has attempted to recapture towns hosting border trade gates to regain control over primary communication and trade routes, analyst Sai Kyi Zin Soe said.
- Military operations focus on Kachin State, rich in rare-earth elements near China, while simultaneously attacking Chin State on the Indian border and the Myawaddy-Kawkareik highway in Karen State near Thailand.
- Ethnic armies, including the Kachin Independence Army, have prepared defenses in townships like Chipwi and Pangwa, declaring they will "welcome them with the barrels of our guns" after rejecting recent peace talk proposals.
- Karen National Union spokesperson Saw Taw Nee stated the military "continuously violated pledges" along the path to peace, adding there is a "complete absence of trust" regarding any new agreements.
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Myanmar's military has launched a large-scale offensive, focusing on border regions with China, India and Thailand, as well as valuable mineral mines.
Ethnic rebel groups had conquered regions at national borders, and the new military chief now wants to regain control of strategically important regions.
Myanmar military steps up rare‑earth and border offensives under new chief
Military targets rare earth-rich Kachin, along with Chin and Karen border areasAnalysts say military aims to regain control of key communication and trade corridorsNew military chief Ye Win Oo leads efforts to regain controlNYAPYIDAW, May 25 — Myanmar’s military has launched renewed offensives into several border regions, including a frontier area with critical rare earth deposits and other vital trade routes, a month after a new administration…
Myanmar's military has launched a large-scale offensive, focusing on border regions with China, India and Thailand, as well as valuable resource mines.The military in Myanmar has been ruling with brutal hardship for almost five years. (Picture of the archive) Image: keystoneMyanmar's military has launched a large-scale offensive, focusing on border regions with China, India and Thailand, as well as valuable resource mines.An article byThe milita…
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