Myanmar president seeks peace talks by July 31, 2 rebel groups reject offer

Myanmar’s new military-backed government wants to hold peace talks with ⁠opposition armed groups by the ⁠end of July, the country’s ⁠junta leader-turned-president said, but two key rebel groups rejected the offer on Tuesday.State media reported that President Min Aung Hlaing, who led a coup five years ago that plunged the Southeast Asian country into a civil war that continues to ‌rage, told a government meeting that he wanted rebel groups that were not part of a ceasefire deal to join talks to be held within 100 days.“For groups that have not yet engaged in dialogue and negotiation, we also invite them to come participate in discussions by the final deadline of July 31,” he said, and mentioned ⁠opposition groups such as the Karen National Union, the Chin National Front (CNF), and the All Burma ‌Students’ Democratic Front.Min Aung Hlaing referred to signatories of the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) in his remarks, a deal that was in place before the 2021 ‌coup threw it into question.Saw Taw Nee, a spokesperson for the KNU, dismissed ⁠the government proposal. “The KNU ⁠has already withdrawn from the NCA since the 2021 coup. We have no plans to return to negotiations ‌or follow the NCA path,” he said.CNF spokesman Salai Htet Ni said his group was seeking a federal democratic system free ‌of the ‌influence of the military.