Khaing Roe La/DMG
March 15, Sittwe

The National Reconciliation and Peace Center (NRPC) on Wednesday invited eight non-signatories of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) including the Arakan Army to attend the peace talks on March 21.

The invitation letter dated March 13 said that the next dialogue will be held in Nay Pyi Taw to discuss the upcoming peace process with ethnic armed groups.

The United Wa State Party, the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), the Shan State Progressive Party (SSPP), the United League of Arakan ( ULA), the Eastern Shan State Peace and Solidarity Committee ( PSC), the Myanmar National Truth and Justice Party ( MNTJP), the Palaung State Liberation Front ( PSLF) and the Karenni National Progressive Party ( KNPP) are officially invited.

“We received an invitation. But we are now discussing if we should attend or not. So, we could not confirm acceptance now,” the AA’s information officer Khaing Thu Kha said.

It will discuss with the Federal Political Negotiation and Consultative Committee (FPNCC) the invitation of the government to attend the peace talk, he added.

The Tatmadaw Negotiation Committee will talk with each ethnic armed group after they discuss with the NRPC. So, a specific ethnic group that wants to discuss issues with the Tatmadaw needs to reply in advance, the invitation letter said.

Two persons from an ethnic group, a leader and a member, will have to attend the meeting.

The seven ethnic armed organizations including the AA refused the NCA and announced that they would adopt a new peace process headed by ‘Wa’ group.
The NRPC talked with KIA, TNLA, MNDAA and AA on February 25 in Kunming, China. In the discussion, they expressed their wiliness to sign a bilateral agreement for a preliminary ceasefire with the government, and the government’s side told them to sign the Deed of Commitment and the NCA, a top senior from Northern Alliance said.

But no resolution was reached and both sides put a halt to the dialogues.

The AA, TNLA and MNDAA released a statement on December 12 that they wished to resolve ongoing armed conflicts and political issues through discussions with the government and Tatmadaw, and to work towards peace as early as possible through a political platform by stopping military operations.

The ongoing battle between the Tatmadaw and AA in Rakhine State has been escalating, resulting casualties on both sides.