Twenty percent of the soldiers have left the army, according to military experts

In addition to military officers who have now defected from the Burmese army, The United States-based Burma expert and military expert, Daw Mi Mi Win Bhat, told RFA that as many as 20 percent of all military personnel have left the ranks unaccounted for and are not on the CDM list.

"I want to say that the Burmese military is now in a state of disarray," he said. I interviewed some army officers up to the rank of battalion commander who had left the Burmese Army. According to them, each battalion normally has about 800 troops. Now there are only about 150. Of those 150 troops, only 75, or about 50 percent, were ready for battle. This means that there are only 70 battalions in the 800-strong battalion. About 70 percent of the 150 troops said they did not want a war. However, the army has not been able to leave due to various reasons. In addition, about 20 percent of the 150 or so soldiers have left their mother battalions. Most of these defectors are not on the CDM list. Myanmar Military leaders have also appointed some criminals as soldiers to replenish the declining army. The criminals who are recruited as new soldiers are not organized. There will be no comradeship at all. Taken together, these factors make it difficult for the Burmese military to survive in the long run. ”

He said the release of some of the Burmese army officers currently being held in Australia was believed to be a reason for more Burmese troops to leave, and that there was a lot of contact with organizations assisting Burmese soldiers who have now left the army.

Mimi Winbert, a Burmese national, retired from the US Army as a lieutenant colonel and continued to work closely with the Burmese military under the previous civilian government to improve relations between the United States and Burma under the previous civilian government, while still working as a Burma expert at the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies in Hawaii.

"Burma's military leaders are cut off from the outside world and lacking accurate information is a key factor in a coup," she said.

"It simply came to our notice then. It is clear that the Burmese military leader did not expect the entire population to revolt after their coup. The people remained calm and thought their coup was over. They are completely cut off from the outside world, and management is moving from top to bottom. Under dictatorships, the people at the grassroots are often told what their leaders want to hear, leaving many blind spots. Then I made the wrong decision. The same thing applies with Putin.

The Burmese military has not released the exact number of troops, but the International Firepower Review website Global Firepower estimates the number at around 450,000. International media and military analysts estimate that there may be as many as 300,000 troops, but that the inflated numbers include non-military family members.