The Myanmar–Thailand border is the international border between the territory of

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

(formerly ''Burma'') and

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

. The border is in length and runs from the

tripoint A triple border, tripoint, trijunction, triple point, or tri-border area is a geography, geographical point at which the boundaries of three countries or Administrative division, subnational entities meet. There are 175 international tripoints ...

with

Laos Laos, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR), is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Myanmar and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west and ...

in the north to the

Andaman Sea The Andaman Sea (historically also known as the Burma Sea) is a marginal sea of the northeastern Indian Ocean bounded by the coastlines of Myanmar and Thailand along the Gulf of Martaban and the west side of the Malay Peninsula, and separated f ...

coast in the south.

Description

The border starts in the north at the tripoint with Laos at the confluence of the Kok and

Mekong River The Mekong or Mekong River ( , ) is a transboundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's List of rivers by length, twelfth-longest river and List of longest rivers of Asia, the third-longest in Asia with an estimated l ...

s and, after briefly following the Kok and then the Sai, then proceeds overland to the west via a series of irregular lines through the

Daen Lao Range The Daen Lao Range (,
; ) is a mountain range of the Salween River The Salween is a Southeast Asian river, about long, flowing from the Tibetan Plateau south into the Andaman Sea. The Salween flows primarily within southwest China and eastern Myanmar, with a short section forming the border of Myanmar and Tha ...

. The border follows the Salween and then

Moei River The Moei River (, , ), also known as the Thaungyin River (; ) is a tributary of the Salween River. Unlike most rivers in Thailand, the Moei River flows north in a northwest direction. It originates in Phop Phra District, Tak Province, flowing th ...

southwards, before leaving it and proceeding southwards overland through the

Dawna Range The Dawna Range (; ), also known as Dawna Hills, is a mountain range in eastern Myanmar (Burma) and northwestern Thailand. Its northern end is located in Kayah State where it meets the Daen Lao Range, a subrange of the Shan Hills. The range runs ...

and Bilauktaung Range (collectively these mountains form the

Tenasserim Hills The Tenasserim Hills or Tenasserim Range (, ; , , ; ) is the geographical name of a roughly 1,700 km long mountain chain, part of the Indo-Malayan mountain system in Southeast Asia. Despite their relatively scant altitude these mo ...

). The border continues southwards down the

Malay Peninsula The Malay Peninsula is located in Mainland Southeast Asia. The landmass runs approximately north–south, and at its terminus, it is the southernmost point of the Asian continental mainland. The area contains Peninsular Malaysia, Southern Tha ...

, almost cutting Thailand in two at

Prachuap Khiri Khan Prachuap Khiri Khan (, ) is a town in western Thailand. It is the capital of Prachuap Khiri Khan Province and is on the coast close to the narrowest stretch in Thailand, only from the border with Myanmar at Dan Sing Khon in the Tenasserim Hills ...

, before reaching the

Isthmus of Kra The Kra Isthmus (, ; ), also called the Isthmus of Kra in Thailand, is the narrowest part of the Malay Peninsula. The western part of the isthmus belongs to Ranong Province and the eastern part to Chumphon Province, both in Southern Thailan ...

and the

Kraburi River The Kraburi River (, , ; , BGN/PCGN: myitkyina, ''Kyan River''), also Kra () or Pak Chan River (), is the boundary river between Thailand and Myanmar at the Kra Isthmus of the Malay Peninsula. The river has its source in the Tenasserim Hills ...

, which it then follows out via a wide estuary to the Andaman Sea. The maritime boundary then follows coordinates marked by the countries' continental shelf delimitation agreement towards the tripoint with India, which controls the

Andaman and Nicobar Islands The Andaman and Nicobar Islands is a union territory of India comprising 572 islands, of which only 38 are inhabited. The islands are grouped into two main clusters: the northern Andaman Islands and the southern Nicobar Islands, separated by a ...

History

The border regions have historically been contested between the various Thai and Burmese states.

Fighting Combat ( French for ''fight'') is a purposeful violent conflict between multiple combatants with the intent to harm the opposition. Combat may be armed (using weapons) or unarmed ( not using weapons). Combat is resorted to either as a method of ...

between Burma and the Siamese

Ayutthaya Kingdom The Ayutthaya Kingdom or the Empire of Ayutthaya was a Thai people, Thai kingdom that existed in Southeast Asia from 1351 to 1767, centered around the city of Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya (city), Ayutthaya, in Siam, or present-day Thailand. Europe ...

over control of what is now Myanmar's

Tanintharyi Region Tanintharyi Region (, ; Mon: or ; formerly Tenasserim Division and Tanintharyi Division) is a region of Myanmar, covering the long narrow southern part of the country on the northern Malay Peninsula, reaching to the Kra Isthmus. It borders ...

dominated the area in the 16th century, before Burma destroyed Ayutthaya and took control of the region in 1767. Soon after, Siam extended suzerainty over the

Lanna Kingdom The Lan Na kingdom or the Kingdom of Lanna (, , "Kingdom of a Million Rice Fields"; , , ), also known as Lannathai, was an Greater India#Indianization, Indianized state centered in present-day Northern Thailand from the 13th to the 18th centuri ...

(now

Northern Thailand Northern Thailand, or more specifically Lanna, is a region of Thailand. It is geographically characterized by several mountain ranges, which continue from the Shan Hills in bordering Myanmar to Laos, and the river valleys that cut through them. ...

), which had previously been under Burmese control. Burmese expansion in the 19th century brought it into conflict with the British in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, sparking a series of

conflicts Conflict may refer to: Social sciences * Conflict (process), the general pattern of groups dealing with disparate ideas * Conflict continuum from cooperation (low intensity), to contest, to higher intensity (violence and war) * Conflict of ...

which ended with Burma being occupied and incorporated into

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

. With

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

occupying

French Indochina French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China), officially known as the Indochinese Union and after 1941 as the Indochinese Federation, was a group of French dependent territories in Southeast Asia from 1887 to 1954. It was initial ...

in the same period, the two European states allowed the Kingdom of Siam (the old name for Thailand) to retain its independence as a

buffer state A buffer state is a country geographically lying between two rival or potentially hostile great powers. Its existence can sometimes be thought to prevent conflict between them. A buffer state is sometimes a mutually agreed upon area lying between t ...

In 1868 Britain and Siam signed a treaty delimiting the Burma-Thai border from the Salween south to the Andaman Sea. Following some confusion as to the border's location, on the ground demarcation of the border commenced from 1889 to 1892. In 1892 the northern section of the border delimited and then demarcated on the ground from 1893 to 1894, with a final boundary treaty with maps signed on 17 October 1894. The northern terminus of the border was fixed in 1896 when the British and French agreed that the Mekong would serve as the Burma-Laos border. Some minor boundary adjustments occurred in 1929 and 1934. In 1941, following

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

invasion An invasion is a Offensive (military), military offensive of combatants of one geopolitics, geopolitical Legal entity, entity, usually in large numbers, entering territory (country subdivision), territory controlled by another similar entity, ...

of Burma, parts of Burma were ceded to Siam as the

Saharat Thai Doem ''Saharat Thai Doem'' () was an administrative division of Thailand. It encompassed parts of the Shan States of British Burma annexed by the Thai government after the Japanese conquest of Burma. By means of this annexation, Axis powers, Axis-a ...

territory, however these areas were returned to Burma in 1946 following Japan's defeat and since then the border has remained in place. In 1937 Burma was separated from India and became a separate colony, gaining full independence in 1948, at which point the border became an international frontier between two sovereign states. At present there is an outstanding dispute over the ownership of some small islands in the Andaman Sea. From 2010 to 2012 there were clashes along the border between the Myanmar army and the

Karen National Liberation Army The Karen National Liberation Army (; abbreviated KNLA) is the military branch of the Karen National Union (KNU), which campaigns for the self-determination of the Karen people of Myanmar (formerly Burma). The KNLA has been fighting the Burmes ...

. In 2021, the Myanmar military clashed with civilians in the border areas. Many of them fled and ended up in Thailand. In 2023 there were more clashes and the governments of both countries have decided to form a humanitarian task force.

Border crossings

, there were 6 permanent border crossings, 1 temporary border crossing, 13 checkpoints for

border trade Border trade, in general, refers to the flow of goods and services across the border between different jurisdictions. In this sense, border trade is a part of the normal trade that flows through the ordinary export/import legal and logistical fra ...

and 1 special checkpoint for border trade.

Permanent border crossings

Temporary border crossings

These border crossings are open for foreigners for travel purposes only.

Checkpoints for border trade

These border crossings are open for cross-border local trade only. There are 13 checkpoints for border trade officially recognized by the Ministry of Interior, located in

Chiang Rai Chiang Rai (, ; , ) is the northernmost major city in Thailand, with a population of about 200,000 people. It is located in Mueang Chiang Rai District, Chiang Rai Province. Chiang Rai was established as a capital city in the reign of King Ma ...

Chiang Mai Chiang Mai, sometimes written as Chiengmai or Chiangmai, is the largest city in northern Thailand, the capital of Chiang Mai province and the List of municipalities in Thailand#Largest cities by urban population, second largest city in Thailan ...

Mae Hong Son Mae Hong Son (; , ) is a town ('' thesaban mueang'') in north-west Thailand, capital of Mae Hong Son Province. It is in the Shan Hills, near the border with Burma along the banks of the River Pai. As of 2018, the town had 7,066 inhabitants. The ...

and

Ranong Ranong () is a town (''thesaban mueang'') in southern Thailand, capital of the Ranong Province and the Mueang Ranong District. The town covers completely the area of the ''tambon'' Khao Niwet (เขานิเวศน์). As of 2024, it had ...

provinces. Entering the opposite country beyond these checkpoints and their associated markets is illegal.

Special checkpoint for border trade

One special checkpoint for border trade is planned as a future permanent crossing. Entering the opposite country beyond these checkpoints and their associated markets is currently illegal.

Gallery

File:Doi Chang Moob army outpost Thailand - Myanmar Border จุดชมวิวฐานปฏิบัติการดอยช้างมูบ เชียงราย - img 03.jpg, A scenic viewpoint of the border along the

Daen Lao Range The Daen Lao Range (,
; ) is a mountain range of the Mae Sai District Mae Sai (, ; Shan: , ) is the northernmost district (''amphoe'') of Chiang Rai province in northern Thailand. The town of Mae Sai is a major border crossing between Thailand and Myanmar. Asian Highway Network AH2 (Thailand Route 1 or Phahonyo ...

File:Kawthaung entrance, Myanmar.jpg, Pier at Kawthaung File:Moei River.jpg, The border along the Moei river, with Myanmar on the opposite bank File:Myanmar-Thailand bridge in Mae Sai 6.jpg, Border gate at Mae Sai File:Border Tachilek.jpg, The border bridge at Tachilek File:Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge Gate.jpg, Mae Sot border crossing File:Dan Sing Khon263.JPG, Border control gate at Dan Sing Khon

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Myanmar-Thailand border

border Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...

Borders of Thailand Borders of Myanmar International borders