DIMAPUR, DECEMBER 28 (MExN): The NSCN (K) today reportedly held a meeting with the Myanmar government’s Peace Commission in Yangon in a bid to improve relations on the road to an eventual peace deal.
This was reported in Myanmar news outlet ‘The Irrawaddy’ in an article published today.
The NSCN (K) is one of 21 ethnic armed groups in official talks with the government to reach lasting peace. Though the Naga group signed a ceasefire deal with the Sagaing Region government in 2012, it has yet to join the broader Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA).
The report mentioned that the NSCN (K) last met with the Peace Commission more than a year ago and joined Thursday’s meeting to improve relations with the new government’s negotiators. U Kyaw Wan Sein, one of the NSCN (K)’s five delegates at the meeting, was quoted as stating that the talks went well, “in part because the government’s negotiators included some familiar faces from prior meeting.”
The Peace Commission is chaired by Tin Myo Win.
“We met with the [Peace Commission] because we want to have stability in our region. As long as we have a constant relationship, we can build more trust,” the report quoted U Kyaw Wan Sein as saying.
The meeting reportedly discussed the need to achieve and maintain peace in contested areas but did not talk about development or the NCA specifically.
The Peace Commission’s U Aung Soe was reported as saying that commission urged the NSCN (K) to attend the next session of the 21st Century Panglong peace conference set for late January.
“There was no specific demand [from the NSCN-K]. We invited them to join the peace conference,” U Aung Soe said. “We talked about coordinating to address issues relating to the lack of development in the region.”
