Myanmar lies at region where the
Indian,
Burma and
Eurasian plates
collide; with the Burma plate wedged between. The north-northeast motion of the Indian plate towards the Eurasian plate has resulted in the formation of two major plate boundaries along the Burma plate; the
Sagaing Fault to the east, and a complex
convergent boundary accommodating oblique subduction of the Indian plate beneath Myanmar.
Subduction of the Indian plate occur along the Arakan Megathrust; the northern continuation of the
Sunda Megathrust; capable of generating an earthquake greater than magnitude 8.0. The 8.5–8.8
Arakan earthquake of 1762 is believed to be a thrusting earthquake on the Arakan Megathrust.
Intermediate-depth intraslab earthquakes occur as a result of faulting within the subducting Indian plate beneath the Burma plate. These earthquakes have hypocenter depths that range from to greater than . Earthquakes including the 7.3
1988 Myanmar–India earthquake, as well as the
April and
August earthquakes of 2016 were associated with intermediate-depth intraslab activity. The 1988 earthquake is the largest known intermediate-depth event in Myanmar. ==Earthquake==