The military council has announced that all new recruits from Training Batch 12 will be primarily deployed to regions experiencing the most intense fighting, including Rakhine, Northern Shan, Karenni, Karen, Sagaing, Chin, and Kachin operational areas. Military officers have threatened that if soldiers attempt to desert or surrender to opposition forces, their families’ social and economic lives will be destroyed. During the graduation ceremonies held on July 4, military council officers instructed new recruits to ‘fight bravely, advance bravely, and destroy bravely,’ promising opportunities and future security from the state for good results. However, they threatened that desertion or surrendering to opposition groups would result in a lifetime as a fugitive and the destruction of their families’ dignity and socioeconomic status, according to a graduate from the No. 1 Advanced Training School in Taikkyi Township.
Currently, intense battles are occurring in Kyaukphyu, Hpakant, Banmaw, Bago Yoma, Moebye, Naung Cho, Chin State, Magway Region, Ngape, Ayeyarwady Region, and areas bordering Rakhine State. The military is conducting extensive airstrikes, artillery bombardments, and ground operations in these areas. Military officials have confirmed that all graduating recruits will be sent exclusively to frontline combat zones and will not be used for garrison duties or urban security operations. The military council has specifically informed new recruits during their graduation dinner that deployments will begin on July 6, with priority given to conflict-heavy regions, though specific assignments have not yet been disclosed to individual soldiers.
The situation reflects the military council’s desperate need for troops in active combat zones, where they are facing significant resistance. Recruits are currently still allowed to maintain contact with their families, though this may change upon deployment. The military’s threats against families of deserters demonstrate their coercive tactics to maintain control over new recruits, while the immediate deployment to intense combat zones indicates the severity of their personnel shortages in these areas. The military council’s focus on deploying these new recruits directly to frontline positions, rather than allowing for additional training or garrison duties, suggests an urgent need to reinforce their positions in areas where they are facing significant challenges from resistance forces.
