India launches UN peacekeeping course for Myanmar military amid rising civilian toll

By NE NOW NEWS

Guwahati: India on Monday launched the ninth United Nations Peacekeeping Officer Course for Myanmar military personnel in Naypyitaw, amid continued criticism of the junta’s military operations against civilians in resistance-held areas.

The training programme, which will run until May 22, was inaugurated by Myanmar Deputy Commander-in-Chief Kyaw Swa Lin and attended by India’s Ambassador to Myanmar Abhay Thakur, defence attachés, Indian instructors and Myanmar trainees.

Myanmar state media reported that 30 officers from the country’s army, navy and air force are participating in the course. The programme includes training in UN peacekeeping ethics, protection of civilians and children, military-civilian cooperation, patrolling, convoy security, company base construction and Blue Helmet exercises.

The latest initiative marks India’s second UN peacekeeping course in Myanmar since the military coup in 2021.

The programme comes days after Myanmar military chief Ye Win Oo met Indian Navy chief Dinesh Kumar Tripathi in Naypyitaw. The visit was reportedly the first by a foreign military leader since Ye Win Oo assumed office in late March.

During the visit, Admiral Tripathi also attended a dinner hosted aboard an Indian naval warship at Yangon’s Thilawa port, where he met Myanmar military deputy leader Lt Gen Ko Ko Oo.

With Kyaw Swa Lin presiding over the peacekeeping course, all three of Myanmar’s top military leaders have engaged with Indian military officials within a week.

Reports said discussions between Ye Win Oo and Admiral Tripathi focused on joint military exercises and cooperation against armed groups operating along the Indo-Myanmar border.

The engagements come as Myanmar’s military intensifies operations in the border regions, including efforts to regain control over areas near India. Regime forces have reportedly recaptured Falam in Chin State and Mawlu in Sagaing Region.

The launch of the UN peacekeeping course also coincided with reports of junta airstrikes on civilian areas in Chin State’s Mindat and alleged arson attacks on villages in resistance-held parts of Mandalay Region’s Myingyan Township.

Critics have pointed to the contradiction between the course’s emphasis on civilian protection and allegations of continuing attacks on non-combatants by Myanmar’s military.

Analysts say India’s engagement with Myanmar’s junta is driven by strategic concerns, including countering China’s growing influence in the region and advancing its “Act East” policy.

While Beijing continues to pursue the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor to secure access to the Indian Ocean, New Delhi has invested in connectivity initiatives such as the Kaladan multimodal transit project and the India-Myanmar-Thailand trilateral highway. However, both projects have faced delays due to instability and shifting territorial control in Myanmar.

Myanmar is India’s only land bridge to Southeast Asia and shares a long border with India’s Northeast, making it strategically significant despite the ongoing conflict.