How Conscription Reshaped Myanmar’s Conflict

Forced recruitment has helped reverse momentum back in the military’s favor, even as it pushes many young men to flee.

Soldiers march during a ceremony to mark Myanmar’s Armed Forces Day in Naypyidaw, Myanmar, on March 27. November 17, 2025, 10:14 AM Comment icon View Comments ( )

Operating in Myanmar’s Kayin state in the spring, Maung Phyo’s unit made steady progress against the pro-democracy forces arrayed against the military regime, pushing deeper into rebel territory despite facing a daily barrage of drone strikes, artillery attacks, and land mines.

But Maung Phyo was not a willing soldier: The 25-year-old said that he was abducted at gunpoint last December by the Myanmar military while harvesting rice at a farm 500 miles away

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