Mekong River four-nation patrols begin after attacks

BBC News

opswarfare came across this news story by chance while looking for another article. Tactical details of the "so-called" joint patrols are not known.

It is not yet clear how they will link up with their Burmese, Lao and Thai counterparts, how far along the Mekong the patrols will go, or if officers from one country will be able to perform arrests in others' territorial waters.

If the details are ironed out, it may point the way towards a similar arrangement for the disputed Spratly islands.

The end of a painful chapter

Al Jazeera
US troops are finally leaving Iraq, a country they invaded for the wrong reasons.

While most eyes turn to Afghanistan, we should not forget the errors committed, when the international community was misled into supporting the war.

Shan State Army - South (SSA-S)

opswarfare embarks on Part 2 of the series on current conflicts in South-East Asia.

Myanmar vs Shan State Army - South

The Shan State Army - South (SSA-S) is one of the rebel groups in Burma/Myanmar. Similar to the previous post on the Karen National Union (KNU), the status is of a low-intensity conflict.

Jane's description of this group below.

Active on the southern border with Thailand, this 'new' SSA became known as the Shan State Army - South (SSA-S) to distinguish it from the original SSA, which was still at peace with the government, and which became known as the Shan State Army - North (SSA-N). 

The objective of the SSA-S is to establish an autonomous Shan State within a federated Union of Myanmar. It seeks to use force to coerce the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) - the military junta that rules Myanmar - into complying with this demand.

Military tactics

With a low-intensity conflict, guerilla tactics are to be expected. According to this report, attacks on the logistics network (in this case, food) is one of the tactics employed.