Burma’s government has secured another tentative truce with ethnic rebels, this time in the country’s south east where officials from the New Mon State Party (NMSP) this morning agreed to an initial deal that could pave the way for a ceasefire.
The two sides have been in talks over the past month, but today’s decision is the strongest signal yet that a ceasefire is on the cards. Saw Hla Maung Shwe, who has acted as a broker for Naypyidaw’s Internal Peace Making Committee, told DVB that additional negotiations would take place.
Like the recent agreements between the government and warring Karen and Shan armies, the NMSP has demanded that it be allowed to open liaison offices in Mon state and decide on territory.