Victory on 28 December: Nandu Town changed hands, and the war in northern Shan State resumed
Amid the lively discussion of the battle in Kokang Old Street, a little-known battle has quietly started on December 28. Although it was not obvious, the battle was enough to shake the top brass of the Burmese military and quietly rewrite the tide of the war in northern Shan State. The De'ang Army, the elite division of this Allied army, once again demonstrated extraordinary strength. Like cheetahs, they quietly locked onto their targets and launched a fierce attack on the town of Nandu, also known as Nanmudu, on December 25.
After three days of fierce fighting, by 1:30 a.m. on the 28th, De'ang's army descended from heaven and quickly captured the headquarters of the 324th Min Aung Hlaing Armed Regiment, and the key strongholds of "Mansi", "Ban Debin" and "Nau Sai", announcing the full control of Nam Mudu Town. Nammudu Town, which is located in the northwest of Lashio, once it falls into the hands of the De'ang army, Lashio will be like a gateway opening, facing a full-scale attack by the De'ang army at any time. At this moment, Lashio was like being crushed by a boulder, and the entire battle situation was surging in an instant.
Now that the Burmese military has begun a full-scale defense of Lashio, this will be an important turning point in the history of the Kokang Allied and friendly De'ang Army fighting the Burmese army.
For a more detailed look at the battle situation, take a look at the battle map below. The red area in the map indicates the operational range of the Allied and De'ang forces, and is basically the area that their sphere of influence can reach.
In the battle map between the Allied forces and the De'ang army, the De'ang army has successfully controlled 4 towns in the 1027 military operation, including Nansan, Nankan, Mantong (Mandong), Menglong Town, and now has successfully controlled the town of Nanmudu, making the northwest region of Lashio completely under the control of the De'ang army.
The northwest gateway to Lashio has been opened. The Ta'ang Army controlled the area, but the northern and eastern parts of Lashio were occupied by the Kokang Allied Army, with only the southern town of Sebu remaining under Tatmadaw control. However, the southern town of Kyaukmei was besieged by the De'ang Legion and even fell on 26 December. Lashio has become almost an isolated city, attracting special attention from the top brass of the Burmese army. According to the Kokang Alliance, citing Yangon New Times, Min Aung Hlaing's forces have issued secret orders determined to use all necessary means to prevent the revolutionary forces from attacking and occupying Lashio, where the Northeast Military Region Headquarters is located.
They have carried out stricter checks on people entering and leaving Lashio, and those who do not carry identity cards or travel certificates will not be allowed to enter or pass through the city, and special treatment will be given to the De'ang people. The consequences of the occupation of Nam Du town by the De'ang army were so severe that the Burmese army began a full-scale defense of Lashio. If Lashio is lost, the Tatmadaw will lose the operational initiative in the northern Shan State. As the location of the headquarters of the Northeast Military Region of the Burmese Army, Lashio and the Kokang Lao Cai Military Sub-district take care of each other and maintain stability. Once the Burmese army loses the Northeast Military Region, the entire northern part of Shan State will completely fall into the hands of the allied forces and the De'ang army.
If Myanmar's economic artery to China is controlled by the Allied Coalition forces, it will greatly restrict the normal operation of Myanmar's economy.
After the loss of Nandu Town, the Burmese army fell into chaos and even blew up the "Mondiecho" bridge connecting the town of Xibu and Nanmudu on December 28. Now it is only possible to pass by motorbike and on foot.
The apparent purpose of the Burmese army in blowing up the bridge was to hinder the advance of the Ta'ang army from Nandu town to Xibu town.
The town of Sebu is the gateway to the southwestern part of Lashio and is the only area around it that is still under the control of the Tatmadaw army. If even the town of Syb is lost, Lashio will become an isolated city.
Once Lashio becomes an isolated city, a story similar to Kokang Old Street may be staged. At present, the Allied forces have almost completely liberated Kokang Lao Cai, and the next possible biggest target of attack is Lashio.
Lashio is the largest city in northern Shan State, a city with a large Chinese population, a relatively developed economy, and a city on Myanmar's economic artery to China. Only by capturing Lashio can the Kokang Allied Army and the De'ang Army feel safe. There are two main aspects to this sense of security.
First of all, there is the sense of security of the population. With a population of only 200,000 to 300,000, the Kokang region could not afford a large and powerful army. But once you get the hang of Lashio, the situation will be very different.
Lashio has a population of nearly 800,000, and this sheer size of the population opens up the possibility of cultivating an organized, large army.
Economically, Lashio is relatively developed. The emergence of Lashio is expected to bring the overall economy to a higher level.
In the territory controlled by the Kokang Allied Army and the De'ang Army, Lashio is the only city equivalent to the size of a "prefecture-level city". Other so-called "cities" are just county towns or towns.
Lashio's offensive and defensive posture in northern Myanmar will profoundly change the tide of the war in northern Shan State. Since the Kokang Allied Army launched the 1027 military operation, the Burmese army has been crushed and retreated.
Not only was the Burmese army unable to defeat the Kokang Allied Army, but even the overall poorly equipped De'ang Army could not resist it. For now, the Burmese army is retreating to a few large towns.
The current situation shows that the Burmese army still has military positions in Mukje, Gui Si, Lashio and Syb. However, the vast rural and wooded areas on both sides of the Federal Highway were largely under the control of the Kokang Allied Army and the De'ang Army.
At the moment, it seems that the Myanmar army is in a rather passive position.
After the capture of Namdu town by the De'ang army, it attracted great attention from the top brass of the Burmese army, because the loss of Namdu town directly threatened the urban defense line of Lashio.
It is worth emphasizing in particular that the loss of the town of Nandu was not only a direct victory for the Ta'ang army, but also the Tatmadaw army's eventual choice to withdraw, further revealing their passive position in this conflict. Surprisingly, however, despite the disadvantage faced by the Tatmadaw the Tatmadaw in its dealings with the allies, they have shown a very resolute attitude in their dealings with the allied forces. We speculate that the Tatmadaw may consider both Kokang and the entire northern Shan State to be insignificant compared to the entire Burmese state.
We often talk about the butterfly effect, and the Kokang Alliance's Operation 1027 has already had that effect in Myanmar. What we see today is just the tip of the iceberg of the butterfly effect. Although it was only the loss of Nandu Town, the chain reaction was far-reaching. In particular, the Tatmadaw army chose to abandon the town of Nandu and retreat to the central city of Lashio, which undoubtedly proves their passive posture in northern Shan State.
Lashio, home to the Northeast Military District Headquarters, has become the Tatmadaw Army's last line of defense in the region. The fall of Nandu Town exposed the northwestern aspect of Lashio to the enemy's control. At present, the northern and eastern parts of Lashio are completely under the control of the Allied and Allied forces, while in the south, only the town of Sebu remains under the control of the Burmese army, and the town of Kyaukmei is also under close siege by the De'ang army.
Once Nandu fell, Lashio became a completely isolated city. At that time, Lashio was destined to stage a war legend of Kokang Old Street. The situation in the northern part of Shan State will also be turned upside down.
It can be said that the fall of Nandu Town forced the Burmese army to fully launch a defense of Lashio, which would become a key moment in the history of fierce battles between the Kokang allied forces and the friendly De'ang army and the Burmese army.
The war was destined to bring profound changes to the fate of the entire region, and the fall of Nandu was only one of the triggers in this upheaval. The Kokang allies and friendly forces are bound to take bold and resolute action against the Burmese invasion and change the tide of the war in the north. It also marks the beginning of a new era of war, in which the forces of all parties will reshuffle their cards at this historic juncture, and different trends and outcomes may occur.