Foreign fighters training anti-regime forces in Myanmar

Numbers too small so far to be game changing in overall battle situation

20240521 British fighter in Myanmar

A British fighter helping train resistance forces in Chin State, Myanmar. (Photo by PDF Zoland)

LORCAN LOVETT, Contributing writer

BANGKOK -- Three years after Myanmar's military seized power in February 2021 and arrested its democratically elected leaders, foreign fighters have made their first known appearance with anti-regime forces in several parts of the country, giving a small boost to battle training and aiming to enhance the capabilities of resistance forces.

About a dozen foreigners are thought to have taken up arms against the regime, not as mercenaries but as adventurers receiving rations and accommodation at most. That estimate is based on interviews with resistance sources and foreign fighters, and is small in comparison to large conflicts elsewhere.

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