---
title: "Myanmar military, minority armed group agree ceasefire, China says"
description: "BEIJING, Jan 20 (Reuters) - The Myanmar military and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) signed a formal agreement for a ceasefire that began on Saturday, China's foreign ministry said, halting fighting near the border of both countries."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "Myanmar conflict"
author: "Reuters"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/reuters/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-01-20-myanmar-military-minority-armed-group-agree-ceasefire-china-says/"
published: "2025-01-20T12:34:15"
updated: "2025-01-20T12:34:16"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 286
---

# Myanmar military, minority armed group agree ceasefire, China says

> BEIJING, Jan 20 (Reuters) - The Myanmar military and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) signed a formal agreement for a ceasefire that began on Saturday, China's foreign ministry said, halting fighting near the border of both countries.

By Reuters · Published 20 January 2025, 14:34 SAST · Updated 20 January 2025, 14:34 SAST

## Key points
- In a diplomatic tango in Kunming, China plays peacemaker amid Myanmar's chaos, hoping to cool the hot mess brewing along its lengthy border while grappling with the pesky reality of the military junta's crumbling grip.
- Talks in Kunming highlight China's role in mediating peace efforts in northern Myanmar amid ongoing conflict.
- The MNDAA, part of the Three Brotherhood Alliance, has launched offensives against Myanmar's military, gaining territory near the border.
- Analysts express concern over the advancing anti-junta forces, which threaten stability in border regions crucial for Chinese investment.
- China's fears of chaos along its extensive border with Myanmar are compounded by the military's power grab in February 2021, leading to ongoing unrest.

## Content

The two sides held talks in China's southwestern city of Kunming where they thanked Beijing for its efforts to promote peace, ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said during a regular news briefing on Monday.

"Cooling down the situation in the north of Myanmar is in the common interest of all parties in Myanmar and all countries in the region, and contributes to the security, stability and development of the border areas between China and Myanmar," she said.

China will continue to actively promote peace and dialogue and provide support and assistance to the peace process in northern Myanmar, Mao said.

The MNDAA is one of several ethnic minority armed groups fighting to repel the military from what they consider their territories.

It is part of the so-called Three Brotherhood Alliance, with the Ta'ang National Liberation Army and the Arakan Army, that launched an offensive against the military junta in late October 2023 [seizing swathes of territory](https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL4N3HW10O&linkedFromStory=true) near the border with China.

The MNDAA, made up of ethnic Chinese, said last July it had [taken control](https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL4N3JH0NL&linkedFromStory=true) of a major military base near the Chinese border.

Analysts say China is [worried](https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?search=all%3AL6N3LT0EM&linkedFromStory=true) about the advance of anti-junta forces which have pushed the military out of vital borderlands and started making inroads towards the central city of Mandalay.

The military seized power from Myanmar's civilian government in February 2021, plunging the country into crisis.

China fears chaos along its more than 2,000 kilometre long border with Myanmar would jeopardise investment and trade.

Beijing previously brokered a ceasefire deal in the northern borderlands in January 2024, but the deal broke down a few months later.

(Reporting by Ethan Wang and Liz Lee; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Kate Mayberry)