(Xinhua) 08:49, March 15, 2015
BEIJING, March 14 — No further deadly stray fire incidents should happen or the Chinesemilitary will take “firm and decisive action” to protect the safety of its people, seniorChinese military leader Fan Changlong said on Saturday.
Fan, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks while speakingwith Min Aung Hlaing, commander-in-chief of the Myanmar Defense Services over thetelephone, after a bomb dropped by a Myanmar warplane on Friday killed four Chinese insouthwest China’s Yunnan Province.
Fan called on Myanmar to seriously investigate the incident, and urged the Myanmar sideto severely punish the perpetrators, as well as apologize to and compensate the families ofthe victims.
He voiced hope that the Myanmar side would settle the incident well and work with Chinato ensure the safety and stability of the border areas.
Min Aung Hlaing said the Myanmar side understood China’s feelings and assured that theMyanmar side would send personnel to jointly investigate the incident with the Chineseside. Min Aung Hlaing also promised to properly handle relevant issues and hold relevantpeople accountable.
He said the Myanmar military would advance friendly cooperation with the Chinese army.
Myanmar’s warplanes have on several occasions crossed the China-Myanmar border andstray fire has caused casualties and loss of property of the Chinese people, Fan said.
On March 8, stray fire from a fight that occurred between Myanmar’s government forcesand a local ethnic army had damaged a house in China.
Friday’s bombing hit a sugarcane field in the border city of Lincang, killing four peopleworking there and injuring nine others.
Since Friday, China’s Air Force have sent fighter jets to patrol over the China-Myanmarborder areas to “track, monitor, warn and chase away” Myanmar military planes flyingclose to China.
Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin summoned Myanmar ambassador Thit LinnOhn in Beijing Friday night, lodging solemn representations to him.
On Saturday, Chinese ambassador to Myanmar Yang Houlan also lodged urgent andsolemn representations to Myanmar government and military.