Laos–Myanmar border

[1] The border starts in the north at the tripoint with China at the confluence of the Nanla river with the Mekong, and then proceeds in a south-westerly direction down to the tripoint with Thailand at the confluence with the Kok River, save for an eastwards protrusion of the Mekong about halfway along the frontier.

From the 1860s France began establishing a presence in the region, initially in modern Cambodia and Vietnam, and the colony of French Indochina was created in 1887.

Meanwhile Britain began occupying Myanmar (then referred to as Burma), gradually incorporating it into British India.

The border region became unstable in the subsequent decades, with various armed groups operating here, such as the Chinese Kuomintang, Pathet Lao and various Shan militias.

[5][6] There is one main crossing at the Friendship Bridge at Wan Pong-Kyainglap, linking Xieng Kok in Laos with Kyainglap in Myanmar, which opened on 20 November 2018.