To make matters worse, things have been heating up pretty quickly between Myanmar and the PRC after several cross border incidents in the past few days have resulted in Chinese casualties:
China threatens 'decisive' response after Myanmar bombing
(Reuters) - China's military will take "decisive" measures if there is a repeat attack by Myanmar forces on its territory, a senior military officer said after a bomb from a Myanmar aircraft killed four people.
Myanmar government forces have been battling rebels on the border with China since last month and China has urged Myanmar to "lower the temperature".
But Myanmar denied that any bomb from its forces had fallen in China and said the rebels might have fired into China to create "misunderstanding". The rebels do not have aircraft.
China's air force has dispatched planes to patrol the border and step up protection of its airspace. Beijing has also summoned Myanmar's ambassador to complain about the bombing.
Fan Changlong, who is a deputy head of the powerful Central Military Commission, said Myanmar air force aircraft had crossed the border "many times" recently, China's defense ministry said in a statement late on Saturday.
"The Myanmar side must recognize the seriousness of the issue, seriously deal with this incident, punish those who caused the trouble, apologize and pay compensation to family members, and explain themselves to China," Fan was cited as telling Myanmar's military in an emergency telephone call.
Myanmar must take strict steps to rein in its armed forces to ensure no repeat of such incidents, he said.
"Otherwise, China's military will take resolute and decisive measures to protect the lives, property and security of China's people," Fan said, without elaborating.
Speaking at his annual news conference on Sunday, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said that the government had the ability and responsibility to "firmly defend" the stability of the border.
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(Reuters) - China's military will take "decisive" measures if there is a repeat attack by Myanmar forces on its territory, a senior military officer said after a bomb from a Myanmar aircraft killed four people.
Myanmar government forces have been battling rebels on the border with China since last month and China has urged Myanmar to "lower the temperature".
But Myanmar denied that any bomb from its forces had fallen in China and said the rebels might have fired into China to create "misunderstanding". The rebels do not have aircraft.
China's air force has dispatched planes to patrol the border and step up protection of its airspace. Beijing has also summoned Myanmar's ambassador to complain about the bombing.
Fan Changlong, who is a deputy head of the powerful Central Military Commission, said Myanmar air force aircraft had crossed the border "many times" recently, China's defense ministry said in a statement late on Saturday.
"The Myanmar side must recognize the seriousness of the issue, seriously deal with this incident, punish those who caused the trouble, apologize and pay compensation to family members, and explain themselves to China," Fan was cited as telling Myanmar's military in an emergency telephone call.
Myanmar must take strict steps to rein in its armed forces to ensure no repeat of such incidents, he said.
"Otherwise, China's military will take resolute and decisive measures to protect the lives, property and security of China's people," Fan said, without elaborating.
Speaking at his annual news conference on Sunday, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said that the government had the ability and responsibility to "firmly defend" the stability of the border.
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Source
Myanmar Blames Kokang Rebels for Bomb That Killed Four Farmers in China
BEIJING—A warplane from Myanmar killed four Chinese farmers and injured nine after dropping a bomb in China’s southwestern Yunnan province, China state news agency reported Saturday.
According to the report from the Xinhua News Agency in English, China’s vice foreign minister Liu Zhenmin called in Myanmar’s ambassador to Beijing Friday night, demanding an investigation and punishment of those responsible.
The bomb hit a sugar-cane field in Lincang, which borders Myanmar, on Friday afternoon, the report said.
A later report by Xinhua said that China’s air force had since been sent to patrol the border with Myanmar.
Zaw Htay, a director in the office of Myanmar’s president Thein Sein, said Myanmar’s armed forces—known as the Tatmadaw—weren't responsible for the bomb, and instead blamed Kokang rebels that have been fighting government forces near the China border for more than a month.
“If a Tatmadaw aircraft wanted to fly across the border, we would have to seek permission from the other country,” he said. “According to our records, the Tatmadaw did not enter that area.”
Mr. Zaw Htay said Myanmar is willing to cooperate with China to investigate the incident. Members of the Tatmadaw and Myanmar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs plan to meet their Chinese counterparts in coming days to discuss the bombing.
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BEIJING—A warplane from Myanmar killed four Chinese farmers and injured nine after dropping a bomb in China’s southwestern Yunnan province, China state news agency reported Saturday.
According to the report from the Xinhua News Agency in English, China’s vice foreign minister Liu Zhenmin called in Myanmar’s ambassador to Beijing Friday night, demanding an investigation and punishment of those responsible.
The bomb hit a sugar-cane field in Lincang, which borders Myanmar, on Friday afternoon, the report said.
A later report by Xinhua said that China’s air force had since been sent to patrol the border with Myanmar.
Zaw Htay, a director in the office of Myanmar’s president Thein Sein, said Myanmar’s armed forces—known as the Tatmadaw—weren't responsible for the bomb, and instead blamed Kokang rebels that have been fighting government forces near the China border for more than a month.
“If a Tatmadaw aircraft wanted to fly across the border, we would have to seek permission from the other country,” he said. “According to our records, the Tatmadaw did not enter that area.”
Mr. Zaw Htay said Myanmar is willing to cooperate with China to investigate the incident. Members of the Tatmadaw and Myanmar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs plan to meet their Chinese counterparts in coming days to discuss the bombing.
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If the situation continues to deteriorate and we see more casualties on the Chinese side, we could be seeing the start of the first cross border war involving China in the 40 years that have past since Vietnam.