The curtain of the decisive battle on Lao Cai is about to open, and the critical moment to decide the outcome has arrived. Min Aung Hlaing personally visited wounded Burmese soldiers in Lashio, the capital of northern Myanmar, demonstrating his determination to fight and care for soldiers. This is also the first trip to northern Myanmar by Min Aung Hlaing since the outbreak of the Kokang Campaign, showing the importance that Myanmar** attaches to the situation in Kokang and its desire for victory.
Headed by Bai Suocheng, Wei Huairen, Liu Zhengxiang, and others, the core figures of the Kokang wire fraud group, China** issued a wanted warrant and offered a reward for their arrest. This time, the wanted warrant covers a wider range of issues, involving core members of three large blackmail families backed by the Tatmadaw military. China** hopes that this arrest warrant will force the Burmese military to arrest and repatriate the wire fraud leaders. For the Tatmadaw the military, it was a difficult choice. On the one hand, if the Burmese army arrests and hands over these telemail leaders, it will inevitably demoralize the Kokang telemail militia and may even lead to an attack on the Burmese army. On the other hand, failure to hand it over will lead to tensions between China and Myanmar, and the Tatmadaw must bear the consequences. In particular, Bai Socheng, as the core figure of the Kokang Wire Fraud Group, commanded the Wire Fraud Militia in Lao Cai and formed an important support for the Kokang Alliance. The Burmese army's delay in taking action against Bai Socheng is probably because it hopes that he will lead the telemail militia to stick to Lao Cai and start a life-and-death struggle with the Kokang Alliance. The wanted warrant issued by China** has been conveyed in place, and how the Burmese army will choose will determine the final direction of the battle of Lao Cai.
The battle in Lao Cai was still tense, and the Kokang Allied Army maintained its offensive and, after capturing the Erawan Buddha, continued to attack the Great Reservoir and Mixian Gou. Today, on the outskirts of Lao Cai, there are only three main strongholds left, the most difficult of which is Nam Tien Mun Gate, and the other two are Da Shui Dang Pond and Mi Xiangou. The siege of the large reservoir has been more than half a month, and no breakthrough has been made. The Burmese defenders were tenacious, while Mixiangou was the front command of the Burmese army, heavily defended and strong. At present, it is difficult for the Kokang Allied forces to break through these two strongholds. In addition, the Kokang Allied Forces have cut off the road outside Lao Cai, and the Burmese army has been able to hold out mainly by air transport. The air defense of the Kokang Allied Forces is weak, and the Burmese army's *** can fly at low altitude and provide a steady stream of supplies to the Burmese army. Although the Kokang allies had discovered the situation, they could not do anything about it. The Tatmadaw has absolute air supremacy, which is also the biggest weakness of the Kokang Alliance.
The Kokang Allied Army has been slow to launch a general offensive and has been carrying out nail pulling tactics on the periphery. This was due to the lack of the ability of the Kokang allies to siege and fight in the streets. Street fighting is the most brutal form of warfare, often at the cost of a life for a life. The total strength of the Kokang Allied Army, the De'ang National Liberation Army, and the Arakan Army is about 20,000, of which the Kokang Allied Army has only 8,000 people. Compared with the Burmese army and the heavy artillery units stationed at Nantianmen, the gap in strength is not large. The Kokang Allied Army also needed to divide its forces and garrison the passes to defend the main communication arteries on the outskirts of Lao Cai. Otherwise, once Min Aung Hlaing's reinforcements break through the key pass and break through the Burmese defense line from the periphery, it will deal a fatal blow to the Kokang Alliance. In fact, in 2015, Peng Jiasheng tried to capture the center of Lao Cai, but was quickly surrounded and defeated by the Burmese army due to insufficient troops. This time, after months of preparation and accumulation, the Kokang Allied Army had high morale, but it was still under great pressure and risk.
The Battle of Lao Cai has entered the decisive stage, and China has sent more reinforcements to reinforce the strength of the Kokang Alliance. China** handed over the heavy responsibility on the battlefield to Lin Yihua, a senior general of the Yunnan Military Region of the Chinese People's Liberation Army who participated in many important military operations. His command skills in the Battle of Lao Cai were highly recognized, and he was appointed commander-in-chief of the Kokang Allied Army.
Faced with the dilemma of the Battle of Lao Cai, Edward Lam adopted a variety of strategies. First, he organized a number of raids to test the Tatmadaw army's response and defensive capabilities. Through continuous probing, he figured out the weaknesses and defensive layout of the Burmese army, and prepared for further attacks. Secondly, he intensified his strikes on the rear of the Burmese army, constantly weakening the combat capability of the Burmese army. At the same time, he also enlisted the support and fighting strength of more local tribes through national unity work. Finally, he also used the resources of China to provide more **, ammunition and equipment, and strengthened the strength of the Kokang Alliance.
With the passage of time, the Battle of Lao Cai entered the most critical moment. The time has come for the decisive battle of Lao Cai, and who can win the final victory still needs to be decided by the strength and wisdom of both sides. Whatever the outcome, the battle will determine the fate of northern Myanmar and will have far-reaching implications for relations between the two countries.