Myanmar’s military junta is battered by Chinese-backed forces

For now, such attacks are still unusual. But recent advances by two armed groups have nearly brought the war against the military junta to the country’s second city. The two groups, part of a coalition known collectively as the Brotherhood Alliance, have benefited from shadowy relationships with China. It is likely that the rocket which hit Mandalay this week was Chinese-designed. Their shocking victories are an illustration of how China has become the most important outside power in Myanmar since the armed forces seized power in February 2021. But the Brotherhood’s progress has taken on a momentum of its own, and now even China is struggling to rein it in.