China today asked Malaysia to share “exact information” about the missing plane and said it sent “technical specialists” to join the probe after the Malaysian prime minister pointed to “deliberate action” by someone on the jetliner to divert it.
We asked Malaysia to continue to provide “thorough and exact information” about the missing flight MH370, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said.
His comments came soon after Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak’s press conference in Kuala Lumpur. Razak said the movement of the missing flight was “consistent with deliberate action by someone on plane“.
China is extremely concerned as 154 of the 239 people aboard the Beijing-bound jet are Chinese nationals. The Government here is under pressure to give relatives firm news of the aircraft’s fate.
“Chinese technical specialists are on the way to Malaysia for helping the investigation,” Qin said in a statement.
Chinese specialists joining the probe is significant as Razak pointed that the aircraft may have travelled from Thailand towards Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan corridor or from Indonesia to the Indian Ocean.
The first route towards Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan presented a disquieting scenario as both countries border China’s volatile Xinjiang province, which is experiencing upsurge in militancy fuelled by native Muslim Uyghurs.Besides, the region was not far from Afghanistan.
According to Qin, China will timely adjust its deployment of search and rescue forces and call on all countries possibly involved to lend their hands. “We will also keep in touch with relevant countries and international organisations for making our own research and judgement,” he said.
Qin said China attaches great importance to the latest news from the Malaysian government about the missing MH370.
“It is the eighth day since MH370 lost contact with its radar signal and time is life,” Qin said. “We urge Malaysia to expand and define the search area for the missing plane and increase the intensity of the search.”
The missing jetliner carrying 227 passengers, including five Indians and one Indian—origin Canadian, and 12 crew members mysteriously vanished from radar screens an hour after taking off from Kuala Lumpur.
There has been no trace of the plane or any sign of wreckage despite a search by the navies and military aircraft of 13 countries across Southeast Asia.
Yesterday, China appreciated India joining the search operations.
As the search operations shifted to Andaman Sea, China sent two vessels — Haikou Missile Destroyer and Yongxingdao — to the area.