Myanmar junta forces took control of a strategic village in northern Shan State on March 25, advancing closer to a military stronghold known for artillery battalions in Nawnghkio Township, Shan State, local sources said.
Me Poke Village, which the TNLA lost on Tuesday, sits approximately 14 miles northeast of Tawng Hkam Village, a military stronghold known for its artillery battalions.
Since August 2024, the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and its allied forces have been attacking the junta’s Artillery Operations Command 902 in Tawng Hkam. The village, which sits some 20 miles south of Nawnghkio Town, hosts Artillery Battalions 354, 206, and 406.
To defend Tawng Hkam, the junta launched heavy counterattacks earlier this year, reclaiming several villages about a mile southeast of the village in late February. In September last year, the TNLA’s battle to capture Tawng Hkam raged for more than six weeks, as junta forces dug-in to hold onto the remaining positions they had left.
“The fighting is intense right now,” the TNLA source said. “Considering the current situation and military tactics, there are areas where we need to retreat and others where we can advance.”
Tawng Hkam sits along a key road linking northern and southern Shan State, roughly 50 miles by road — or just over 20 miles in a straight line — from Pyin Oo Lwin Town, home to Myanmar’s Defence Services Academies.
A military source involved in a new TNLA counteroffensive said the junta is likely to push its assault toward Nawnghkio Town.
The source added that the junta will likely send reinforcements from Ba Htoo, a military town, and Lawksawk Town, located in southern Shan State. He suspects that the increased junta attacks on Tawng Hkam are intended to produce a “morale boost” and to “thwart any potential assaults” on regime units stationed across Pyin Oo Lwin Town during the Armed Forces Day this Thursday.
“The situation remains tense with regular clashes,” the source said. “We are actively responding to the junta’s attacks with strategic countermeasures every day.”
Following the launch of Operation 1027 by the Brotherhood Alliance, the junta and the alliance signed a ceasefire in January 2024, brokered by China. But the agreement was rendered void after the junta launched artillery and airstrikes on areas under control of the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) and the TNLA in northern Shan, sparking a series of intense battles over several towns.
More recently, the MNDAA signed a ceasefire with the junta after pressure from China in January. It is unclear if the agreement will stand as fighting continues in northern Shan State.
And while ground clashes continue between the TNLA and the junta, the regime is rolling out an aerial campaign, targeting both resistance and civilian groups across the state. On Wednesday, a junta airstrike killed at least four civilians in Thone Se Village, according to the Mandalay People’s Defense Force (MDY-PDF), an ally of the TNLA.
The junta’s recent gains have intensified the battle for control in northern Shan State. As tensions rise ahead of Armed Forces Day, TNLA forces remain entrenched, defending key positions as clashes continue.
“Some crucial strategic positions have not been lost,” the TNLA source said. “ The junta is launching intense attacks, which I interpret as psychological warfare.”
