PLA fears of 'Vietnamese invasion' halt Chinese city government's road construction project

China’s People’s Liberation Army halted a city government’s road construction project on the border with Vietnam last month because of fears it could be used as a shortcut for a “Vietnamese invasion”.

If finished, the road would “definitely become a serious threat to national defence and security”, a PLA officer in charge of border affairs in Fangchenggang city, in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, was quoted as saying in Wednesday’s report China’s defence ministry website.

The two-lane road would have linked the village of Tansan, on the border with Vietnam, to the centre of Fangchenggang city, about 100km away.

The border area between China and Vietnam used to be one of the world’s most intensive area of military conflict.

After a brief but deadly war in 1979, in which more than 30,000 soldiers were killed on both sides, border clashes did not cease until 1990.

Tensions between China and Vietnam flared up again last May following a major confrontation after China installed an oil rig in the disputed waters of the South China Sea.

“This road [would have] one end running up to the border river, the other end straight to our frontline facilities,” the PLA officer explained.

The military stopped the building project – approved by Fangchenggang city government – on the second day of construction in February.

If war broke out between the nations, Vietnamese troops could use the road to launch an attack on the Chinese army, the PLA warned Tansan residents, where the road was being built.

However, the PLA’s intervention in halting the work angered villagers, according to the report.

The road would have been the first paved road linking the village in the remote region to the rest of China

Some city government officials also challenged the military’s decision to intervene.

They have argued that the road would have enabled farmers in the area to transport their agricultural products to market.

The low income of residents in the region would affect the local government’s poverty relief targets.

Military officials have made efforts to pacify the angry protests of locals.

PLA officers have visited every family in the village to inform residents about the sensitivity of the project and its potentially negative effect on China’s boarder defences.

The military has also reached an agreement with the local government to prevent the occurrence of similar incidents in the future.

No construction projects in the region can be launched in future without military approval, the report said.