The Kachin Defense Army (Burmese: ကချင်ကာကွယ်ရေးတပ်ဖွဲ့; abbreviated KDA), also known as the Kaungkha militia, is an armed insurgent group that operates in northern Shan State, Myanmar.

[1] The KDA was formerly the 4th brigade of the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), until it split from its parent organisation, the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO), and moved their headquarters to Kawnghka, Kutkai Township, Shan State.

[2] In 2010, the KDA accepted a proposal by the State Peace and Development Council, the then governing body of Myanmar, to transform into a militia for the Burmese military.

Originally, the KDA requested to be converted into a Border Guard Force to accommodate a larger army size, but this was rejected.

The KDA surrendered their heavy weapons and mortars to the Northeastern Regional Command, in accordance to the "conversion process".