"Myanmar government peace negotiators and the Northern Alliance group of ethnic armies on Tuesday did not reach an agreement on a bilateral cease-fire to end hostilities between the rebel forces and national military in northeast and western Myanmar, though they decided to meet again for further discussions, spokesmen for the parties said. Myanmar military representatives also participated in the meeting with representatives from the four Northern Alliance groups — the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), Arakan Army (AA), Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), and Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) — in the eastern Shan state town of Kengtung. Armed conflict has raged for most of this year between three of the rebel armies and government army in Myanmar’s northern Shan state and between the AA and national soldiers in Rakhine state, leaving scores of civilians and soldiers dead and displacing thousands of local residents. Zaw Htay, director general of the President’s Office, told a news conference that government negotiators and the Northern Alliance agreed to seven points of a draft bilateral cease-fire, including the holding of further talks, the establishment of liaison offices to prevent further fighting, and the return of displaced civilians. He called the talks with the rebel armies positive because they aimed to build trust between the parties, though they yielded no cease-fire agreement. “We had expected to sign [a deal], but they didn’t have a mandate to sign it,” Zaw Htay said. The Northern Alliance has a month-long temporary truce in effect through Oct. 8, while a unilateral cease-fire by the Myanmar military expires on Sept. 21..."