Burma's Armed Forces. Power Without Glory.

Norwalk.: EastBridge.. 2002.. xxxvii + 371pp, index, paperback. Signed by the author. "The first book on the inner workings of the Tatmadaw and essential reading for any student of Burma. The key to coming to grips with modern Burma is understanding the country's armed forces, which have dominated all aspects of Burmese life since the 1962 coup that bought them to power. Yet until now, there has been no comprehensive or detailed study of the Tatmadaw as a military institution. Drawing on five years of research in Burma and further afield, including numerous interviews with military specialists and commentators on both sides of the current political divide, Andrew Selth has written the first book on the inner workings of the Tatmadaw. Here is a scholarly and objective account of Burma's strategic environment, its defence policies and threat perceptions, its military doctrine, defence expenditures, arms acquisitions, and combat capabilities. There are separate chapters on Burma's vast intelligence apparatus, and its suspected uses of chemical and biological weapons. Detailed diagrams and maps help illustrate the Tatmadaw's organisation, structure, and order of battle." From the publisher's description. David Steinberg describes it as "required reading for anyone seriously concerned with Myanmar, the Southeast Asia region and indeed with the relationships between India and China." .