“They agreed on the essence of federalism and used terms such as democracy, equal rights and the right to self-determination,” NCCT deputy leader Padoh Kwe Htoo Win said, referring to the talks with members of the Union Peace-Making Work Committee at the Myanmar Peace Center in Yangon.

Another NCCT member, Dr Lian Sakhong, said that during the last round of ceasefire talks in April government negotiators had been reluctant to accept such terms but had been willing to use some of them in the negotiations on May 21.

“Although the word ‘federal’ was not explicitly used, the government side accepted the key principles that formulate the ethnic leaders understanding of this word,” Dr Lian Sakhong said.

The Myanmar Peace Center’s U Hla Maung Shwe said more than half of the remaining issues of contention in the negotiations on a nationwide ceasefire accord were resolved at the talks, which were due to continue on May 22.

“Of the 45 points remaining from the previous round of negotiations, 25 points have now been resolved,” said U Hla Maung Shwe.

He said the UPWC had already accepted the basic principles of federalism and that the government would negotiate over anything except “separation and damage to sovereignty.”