With US President Donald Trump’s unabashed claim of ending eight wars in eight months hogging the limelight, China’s handling of both intrusions along its border with Myanmar and the Cambodia-Thailand border dispute has gone relatively unnoticed.

Adopting a calibrated and largely restrained approach, Beijing expressed concern over the August 2009 and January 2013 incidents but did not overreact. It urged the parties involved to exercise restraint, resolve their differences through talks and maintain peace and stability along the China-Myanmar border.

Unsurprisingly, Beijing took a firmer stance on the more serious 2015 intrusion. It swiftly dispatched fighter jets to patrol the border and step up protection of Chinese air space. Fan Changlong, then vice-chairman of China’s Central Military Commission, called on Myanmar to recognise the seriousness of the issue, punish the perpetrators, apologise to and compensate the victims’ families, and provide an explanation to China.