Bangkok: In an early sign of new warmth between Bangkok and Naypyitaw, up to 130,000 Myanmar refugees in camps on the Thai side of the border may be returned to Myanmar soon. Many of the refugees have been in the camps for decades and an entire younger generation has been born and raised in them. For years, it has been considered unsafe for them to return to the conflict zones they have fled in past decades.

The plan is partly the result of an obvious coziness between the military junta in Thailand, which seized power on May 22, and Myanmar’s military – still the real power with 25 per cent of seats in parliament allocated to military appointees.