Beijing puts Chinese army on HIGH ALERT amid standoff with militias
CHINA has put its army on high alert after skirmishes with militia in Myanmar (formerly Burma) pushed the superpower close to conflict with one of its most volatile neighbours.
The war footing was triggered after armed insurgents attacked military and police posts close to the shared border at the weekend.
Official state-controlled news agency Xinhua said in a report on Sunday three armed groups attacked security posts in the border towns of Muse and Kutkai in Myanmar's northeast, killing eight and injuring 29.
A statement warned: "The Chinese army is on high alert and will take the necessary measures to safeguard the country's sovereignty and safety, as well as protect the lives and property of Chinese citizens living along the border."
The fighting is centered in Shan state, in the east of Myanmar - formerly Burma - which also borders Thailand and Laos.
Thousands of people have been displaced by decades of violence between the military and ethnic armed groups in Shan.
The People's Liberation Army - or PLA - is the world's largest military force, with a strength of approximately 2.2 million personnel.
Chinese soldiers have not engaged in any major conflict since the wars with Vietnam in the 1960s and 1970s.
But PLA troops are currently deployed in two foreign war zones - northern Mali and Baluchistan in Pakistan.
http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/734728/Chinese-army-high-alert-war-attacks-militias-Myanmar