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Bangkok Post (14/8/99)




BURMA
Border tense as junta and Wa launch Karen attacks
Army prepares for armed intruders
The joint Wa-Rangoon offensive against a Karen ethnic group has intensified
border patrols amid fears of incursions.
A source said United Wa State Army troops have helped Rangoon crush the Karen
National Union army in Pa-an opposite Umphang district, Tak, and opposite
Sangkhlaburi district, Kanchanaburi.
In a secret deal struck with Rangoon, the Wa would be given Karen strongholds
should the suppression succeed, said the source.
For a week, the Pa-an-based fast-deployment government soldiers have led
the Wa
in laying siege to Ban Kratok, Ban Tonkalae, Ban Teelon Pong near the border
with Tak, and to Ban Phaya Tong Su, Ban Tima Bong and Ban Tirai Pa, bordering
Kanchanaburi.
Government forces attached to operation unit 22 have provided supplies and
artillery to the Wa army.
The source viewed the Wa assistance as Rangoon's tactic to avoid being seen
involved in ethnic violence.
With Wa at the forefront of the suppression drive, the battle would be seen as
an intra-ethnic conflict. Engaged in the battle was the KNU's 6th Corps in an
area suitable for growing opium and establishment of a narcotic manufacturing
base.
In the latest development, Rangoon's coastal patrol force was prepared to
despatch a group of commandos to intercept Karen insurgents along the border
with Ratchaburi and Kanchanaburi. The Karen, the source said, were poised to
counter-attack. First Army units were closely watching the situation for fear
of a spill-over.
Border security will be stepped up in the face of a possible influx of Burmese
refugees. 
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