While addressing top political leaders in his concluding address after a nearly three-hour-long all-party meeting that discussed the situation on the India-China border, PM Modi on Friday said: “Na wahan koi hamari seema mein ghus aaya hai, na hi koi ghusa hua hai, na hi hamari koi post kisi doosre ke kabze main hai. Ladakh mein hamaare 20 jaanbaaz shaheed hue, lekin jinhone Bharat mata ki taraf aankh uthakar dekha tha unhe wo sabak sikhakar gaye.”
Following the Prime Minister’s remarks that no one had intruded into Indian territory, CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury said: “Then there is no conflict? Why have our brave soldiers been martyred? Why this all-party meeting?”
AAP leader Sanjay Singh asked: “Has India dropped its claim on the Galwan Valley? If China has not occupied our territory then what are we discussing with China?”
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, on the other hand, tweeted that the Prime Minister had assured all political parties that India was capable of protecting its borders, and that the armed forces had been given the freedom to take necessary steps.
In his first comments since the clash between Indian and Chinese troops on the night of June 15-16, US President Donald Trump described the tension between the two countries as “very tough”, and said his administration was talking to both to help them resolve matters.
“We’re talking to India. We’re talking to China. They’ve got a big problem there, they have come to blows, and we’ll see what happens. We’ll try and help them out,” Trump told reporters at the White House early Sunday India time, on the way to his first post-Covid-19 election rally in Oklahoma.
monthly limit of free stories.
with an Express account.
Following the violent border face-off with China on June 15 that left 20 Indian soldiers dead, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh told the military top brass during a review meeting Sunday that the government has given the forces freedom to “give a befitting reply” if there is further escalation from the other side, sources said.
The meeting, they said, also discussed the existing protocol around the use of firearms and ways to respond in changed situations. “India does not want escalation, but if there is any action from China, the forces have been given the freedom to give a befitting reply,” sources said about the discussions. Read more here
Table Tennis balls, shuttlecocks, badminton and tennis racquets, wrestling mats, javelins, high jump bars, hockey sticks, boxing headguards, mountain climbing accessories, gym equipment, sportswear — the list of sports equipment imported from China goes on and on.
But now, amid the rising clamour to boycott Chinese goods following the border clash that left 20 Indian soldiers dead, leading players in India’s sports industry find themselves in a tough corner. The reason: More than half of India’s sports equipment imports are from China, according to the Department of Commerce’s data for 2018-2019. Read full story by Mihir Vasavda here
The 20 Indian soldiers led by Col B Santosh Babu who were killed in the fierce clash with Chinese troops in Galwan valley on the night on June 15-16 suffered serious injuries apparently inflicted by sharp-edged weapons, and multiple fractures, sources said. “From the condition of the bodies of the martyred soldiers, it appeared that they had fought a fierce battle. It appeared that they [Indian soldiers] killed many [Chinese]. The injuries looked like multiple stab wounds inflicted with sharp-edged weapons, and several of them also had multiple limb fractures,” a doctor at Leh's Sonam Nurboo Memorial (SNM) Hospital, who had seen the bodies, said on condition of anonymity. Read more here
Nearly six years ago, the last major standoff between the Indian and Chinese armies in Ladakh was resolved peacefully through military and diplomatic talks. As is happening now, the talks at the military level were held in Ladakh while the diplomatic discussion took place in Beijing. The crisis erupted in the most dramatic fashion in September 2014 during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Ahmedabad with the then newly elected Prime Minister, Narendra Modi. As the two leaders sat on a swing at the Sabarmati riverfront, more than a thousand Chinese soldiers began pushing their way into Indian territory in Chumar, the southern-most portion of Ladakh’s boundary with Tibet.
Like most other places on the LAC in Ladakh, Chumar is marked by rugged mountains at an altitude of around 16,000 to 18,000 feet, with low temperatures and harsh icy winds. It is one of those areas where India has a road right up to the Line of Actual Control (LAC), then there is a sharp cut across a big nala (rivulet) marked on the map as 30R — a sudden relative height of 30 metres. Read more here
Of the possible triggers cited for the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) targeting of Indian territory along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, the construction of the 255-km long Darbuk-Shyokh-Daulat Beg Oldie (DSDBO) all-weather road is possibly the most consequential. Read more here
The last military skirmish between India and China took place at Nathu La in September 1967. Before the skirmish escalated to artillery guns and threats of fighter jets, there was a scuffle between the soldiers of the two armies. The clash eventually left 88 Indian soldiers dead. More than 300 Chinese soldiers were killed. Read more here
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh reviewed the border situation with China in eastern Ladakh at a meeting with the top military brass on Sunday. The meeting was attended by Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat, Army Chief Gen MM Naravane, Navy Chief Admiral Karambir Singh and Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria. The meeting happened ahead of Singh's visit to Russia to attend a grand military parade in Moscow to mark the 75th anniversary of the Soviet victory over Germany in the Second World War.
In their first comments on the ongoing stand-off between India and China in Ladakh, two of India’s neighbours — Nepal and Afghanistan – has said they are confident that New Delhi and Beijing will resolve their mutual differences “through peaceful means” and “dialogue” for bilateral, regional and world peace and stability. They are the first neighbouring countries to comment on the dispute, which is on since early May and has claimed lives of 20 Indian soldiers in a bloody clash in Galwan Valley. On Saturday, the Nepalese Foreign ministry said, “Nepal maintains that disputes between the countries should be resolved through peaceful means. Nepal has always stood firmly for regional and world peace.” Afghanistan said that it “hopes that the two regional and global powers resolve their differences through dialogue and based on good neighbourly relations”.
Activists of Voice of Northeast India staged a protest against China at Teen Murti in New Delhi on Friday.
After the failure of dialogue at the Major General level to break the deadlock over the standoff at the LAC in Ladakh, discussions are underway between India and China to have another round of military and diplomatic talks next week. A government official told The Indian Express that the military talks will be held at the level of Corps Commander in Ladakh, where the Indian side will be led by GOC 14 Corps Lt General Harinder Singh while the diplomatic talks in Beijing will be led by India’s ambassador to China, Vikram Misri. Preliminary discussions to finalise the schedule of talks are currently on between the two sides, the official said. “The talks at the Major General level have failed to break the impasse and make progress. We thus need talks at a higher level, at the Corps Commander level, and both sides have been talking over the hotline to fix the dates for the talk,” the official explained.
India has certain advantages over China as far as air warfare is concerned, former Indian Air Force chief Fali Homi Major said, adding that military action to force the PLA to withdraw from their positions in the Galwan valley area should be the last option. Major was Air Chief Marshal between April 2007 and May 2009 and earlier commanded the Air Force in Leh (Ladakh) in the aftermath of the Kargil war. “As far as our Air Force preparations are concerned in that region, we are wonderfully placed. There is no doubt. We have many advantages of air fields, heights and altitude, etc. I am not talking of a war, but in the local area if there is some requirement, the Air Force is very well prepared and alert. It has always been so in that area. At the moment, Air Force’s operational preparedness is top of the line,” Major told The Indian Express on the situation in Ladakh vis a vis China.
In first official remarks from the government, Union Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways General V K Singh (retd) on Saturday said that the number of casualties on the Chinese side in the bloody clash at Galwan Valley in Ladakh on June 15 would be at least twice that of the Indian side. “Agar hamare 20 (shaheed) hue hain toh wahan pe kam se kam double se jayada hi honge (if 20 have been killed on our side then more than double would be dead on the other side),” the former Army chief said in an interview to News24 television channel. “Forty-three ki ek count di gayi hai, jo ki aadhikarik taur per di gayi hai. Wo woh hai jo hamare logon ne dekhe jo ki gire aur unko pade dikhayi diye hain. Uske alawa aur uske andar kitne ghayal hue honge pata nahin kisi ko. Toh yeh kahna ki hamare log khade the aur who aakar dande se maar diye, aisa nahin hai. Agar unhone ne ek mara hai, toh hamaro ne do maare honge (A count of 43 has been given at the official level. Our troops saw these many had collapsed. No one knows how many more were injured. So it is not correct to say that our troops remained standing when they came and beat them with sticks. If they killed one, our troops would have taken out two of theirs),” he said.
“My son has sacrificed his life for the country. This is the least I could do for him. Guru Gobind Singh ji’s Chaar Sahibzade (four sons) were martyred, I have given one for the country,” said the grieving mother of Naib Subedar Satnam Singh (41), amid an emotionally-charged crowd that had turned out to pay its respects to the fallen soldier. (Express photo/Rana Simranjit Singh)
Amid opposition parties asking questions over developments at the LAC, the BJP on Saturday talked up Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks at the all-party meeting and attacked the Congress for “raising questions”. BJP president J P Nadda, who addressed party cadres in Rajasthan and Telangana on virtual platforms, accused the Congress of being an “irresponsible” opposition and said its leaders are trying to “demoralise” the nation and the soldiers. “In the all-party meeting, everyone unanimously stood with the Prime Minister. But the Congress wanted to know how did it happen, why did it happen… where did it happen… You have been in power, don’t you know how statements are made by the government on such issues?” Nadda said while addressing the BJP Rajasthan unit.
"This time the Prime Minister has been unusually reticent, but those ‘proud to be followed by Modi’ on Twitter have not. Like the BJP spokesmen they have hurled abuse at anyone who has dared ask questions about why 20 Indian soldiers were killed so brutally. If I were to recount the number of times I have been called a traitor in response to the questions I have asked about the Galwan massacre, I would have to write a whole separate column. Does the Prime Minister realise the damage that his supporters are doing to him?" writes Tavleen Singh.
"Mr Modi’s dream that the 21st century will be a China-India led Asian century is practically over. It is obvious that Mr Modi did not take a correct measure of Mr Xi. Whether Mr Xi took a correct measure of Mr Modi is a matter of speculation. The two leaders cannot be close friends again. They can still do business and sign one-step-at-a-time agreements in the manner that Mr Narasimha Rao, Mr Vajpayee and Dr Manmohan Singh did with their counterparts in China and keep the peace on the 4,056-kilometre border that includes the LAC," writes former Union minister P Chidambaram.
Taking a jibe at the prime minister, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi today said: "Narendra Modi is actually Surender Modi."
Beijing accuses India of building infrastructure, but India says all infrastructure built is on its own side of LAC. China: Since April this year, Indian border troops have unilaterally and continuously built roads, bridges and other facilities at the LAC in Galwan Valley. China has lodged representations and protests on multiple occasions but India has gone even further to cross the LAC and made provocations. India: Indian troops are familiar with the alignment of LAC in all sectors of border areas, including in Galwan Valley. They abide by it scrupulously, as they do elsewhere. The Indian side has never undertaken any actions across the LAC. In fact, they have been patrolling this area for a long time without any incident. All infrastructure built by the Indian side is naturally on its own side. Click here to read more.
Meghnad Desai writes: "This is a long battle, normally dormant but occasionally flaring up. There is no solution which will satisfy both sides as each nation thinks the disputed territory belongs to it. India cannot suffer loss of territory any more than it has already lost, including what Pakistan has given away from its occupied bit of Kashmir. The Chinese feel that two centuries since the Opium war signalled its decline, it is now a powerful nation. It wants to be on top, the Middle Earth — as it believes it was. India never was a single Empire; not even the Mughals ruled over all of it. There is no conceivable solution to this problem. India must defend its own people as much as territory."
As Beijing staked claim over Galwan Valley, India said it is not in accordance with China’s own position in the past. Beijing never claimed the valley since 1962. China: Galwan Valley is located on Chinese side of LAC in west section of China-India boundary. For many years, Chinese border troops have been patrolling in this region. Since April this year, Indian border troops have unilaterally and continuously built roads, bridges and other facilities at the LAC in Galwan Valley. India: The position with regard to Galwan Valley area has been historicalGaly clear. Attempts by the Chinese to now advance exaggerated and untenable claims on LAC there are not acceptable. They are not in accordance with China’s own position in the past. Click here to read more.
Amid opposition parties asking questions over developments at the Line of Actual Control, the BJP on Saturday talked up Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks at the all-party meeting and attacked the Congress for “raising questions”. BJP president J P Nadda, who addressed party cadres in Rajasthan and Telangana on virtual platforms, accused the Congress of being an “irresponsible” opposition and said its leaders are trying to “demoralise” the nation and the soldiers.
“In the all-party meeting, everyone unanimously stood with the Prime Minister. But the Congress wanted to know how did it happen, why did it happen… where did it happen… You have been in power, don’t you know how statements are made by the government on such issues?” Nadda said while addressing the BJP Rajasthan unit.
Even as Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria on Saturday said the IAF is “well prepared and suitably deployed” to deal with any eventuality arising out of the Galwan standoff, analysts told The Sunday Express that although IAF enjoys a geographical advantage over air power, any decision on its use will have to be taken after careful consideration by the government. Also, occupation of the Galwan heights could impact the DBO airstrip, they said.
Sources said the forward bases of Thoise and Leh, which have been operational for several years, are seeing heavy mobilisation of troops and machinery. Nowhar said these bases are of tremendous importance in deployment of men and machinery to the forward areas in the eventuality of a conflict. The IAF transport aircraft can also undertake airdrops, besides landing on various unprepared surfaces.
On June 18, two days after the violent faceoff in the Galwan Valley, the Ministry of Defence contacted manufacturers of protective gear and bullet-proof jackets worn by Army personnel in forward areas, including in Leh, for “urgent” reinforcement of supplies — estimated at 2 lakh units. What has added a twist to this is the fact that a majority of the existing Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) use Chinese raw materials. This includes the company that got the 2017 contract — it’s in the delivery stage — for supplying 1.86 lakh bullet-proof jackets to the Army. Announcing the Rs 639-crore contract to SMPP Pvt Ltd, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had said, in Parliament, that there was “no embargo” on the import of raw materials from China for the manufacture of protective jackets for the Army. With the changed circumstances, there are calls for a rethink. Niti Aayog member and former chief of the Defence Research and Development Organisation V K Saraswat has urged a “re-look” at these imports.
The United states is talking to both India and China to help them resolve their ongoing border tensions, President Donald Trump said on Saturday. “It’s a very tough situation. We’re talking to India. We’re talking to China. They’ve got a big problem there,” Trump told reporters at the White House before boarding Marine 1 on his way to his first post-COVID19 election rally in Oklahoma. “They’ve come to blows, and we’ll see what happens. We’ll try and help them out,” Trump said when asked about his assessment of the situation between India and China.
A day after the all-party meeting at which all national political parties extended support to the Government of India on the Galwan Valley clash issue, Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Saturday urged the Centre to change its policy to allow soldiers at the borders to open fire in their own defence and for protecting the nation’s territorial integrity.
Anurag Srivastava, spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs, while responding to the claim by Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian that “Galwan Valley is located on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control”, said: “the Chinese side departed from these understandings in respect of the LAC in the Galwan Valley area and sought to erect structures just across the LAC” and that Beijing’s claim to Galwan “are not in accordance with China’s own position in the past” – not since the Sino-Indian war of 1962. READ MORE HERE
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh took potshots at the PMO over the clarification issued regarding Narendra Modi's last night's address, in which he said: "Neither has anyone intruded into the Indian territory nor is anyone inside our territory now. None of our military posts has been captured by anyone."
Rejecting China's claim of sovereignty over the Galwan Valley of Ladakh, the Ministry of External Affairs issued a strong rebuttal and stated that attempts by Beijing to "now advance exaggerated and untenable claims with regard to Line of Actual Control there are not acceptable".
"The position with regard to the Galwan Valley area has been historically clear...They are not in accordance with China’s own position in the past," MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastva.
The MEA also rejected Chinese charge that India was "unilaterally" changing the status quo. "On the contrary, we were maintaining it," MEA said.
On Friday, China had said the Galwan valley was “located on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control”, making an unprecedented formal claim on an area that has always been under India’s control. The Galwan Valley has always been under India’s control, and has not figured in China’s maps since 1962.
Hours after senior Congress leader and former finance minister P Chidambaram's media address on Galwan clashes, Congress communications in-charge Randeep Surjewala issued a rejoinder in response to the PMO statement on Friday, saying the 'statement is clearly a lame attempt to obfuscate the truth'.
"The PMO’s statement is clearly a lame attempt to obfuscate the truth. First of all, PMO and the Government need to clearly state their position on the Galwan Valley. Is Galwan Valley not part of Indian territory? Why is Government not coming forward and strongly rebutting the Chinese claim over Galwan Valley? If Chinese troops are present there, does it not amount to intrusion into and occupation of Indian territory? Also, why is the Government silent on intrusions in the Pangong Tso area?" read the rejoinder.
Stating that Nepal has always stood firmly for regional and world peace, the Nepal government expressed confidence that both India and China will resolve their mutual differences through peaceful means in favour of bilateral, regional and world peace, and stability.
Less than an hour after the Congress' address, the government released a statement, saying, "Attempts are being made in some quarters to give a mischievous interpretation to remarks made by the PM at the All-Party Meeting (APM) yesterday. The Prime Minister's observations that there was no Chinese presence on our side of the LAC pertained to the situation as a consequence of the bravery of our armed forced. The sacrifices of the 16 Bihar Regiment foiled the attempt of the Chinese side to erect structures and also cleared the attempted transgression at this point of the LAC on that day."
Workers of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena staged a protest at a construction site in Thane city, over a signboard put up in Chinese, PTI reported. Over 20 MNS workers gathered at a construction site in Balkum area in Thane city on Friday evening. The protest was against a China-based company, which had put up a signboard in Chinese at the site, said Avinash Jadhav, president of MNS' Thane and Palghar district units. Protesters were seen carrying flags and shouting anti-China slogans at the site. Till the entire border issue is resolved, the Chinese company should not conduct any business here and the signboard should be removed at the earliest, Jadhav said.
P Chidambaram added: "Boycotting Chinese goods will not hurt the Chinese economy. I don't think we should bring issues like boycott while discussing grave matters such as defence and national security."
"If the government doesn't responds to China's claims over Galwan Valley today itself, it might have terrible consequences," P Chidambaram said.
"Even after PM’s statement, China has blamed India for the clashes and has re-asserted its claim to the entire Galwan Valley. What is the government’s answer to this claim? Will the Government of India reject this claim?," the Congress leader asked. He added: "What was the meaning of the 'disengagement' that the government said was 'underway'? If no Chinese troops are inside Indian territory in Ladakh, why did 20 soldiers have to make the supreme sacrifice?"
"When the PM said a few days ago that the 'sacrifice of our soldiers will not go in vain', what did he have in mind? Why and where did the soldiers sacrifice their lives, and how will the government ensure that the sacrifice will not be in vain? We ask these questions while reiterating our total support to the Government of India and India’s defence forces. The defence of the nation and its territorial integrity are dear to the heart of every Indian. We therefore seek answers to the questions with a view to re-double our commitment and present a picture of unity and solidarity," Chidambaram added.
Addressing the media on the Galwan clashes, former Union minister P Chidambaram said: "What was the issues that the local commanders were talking with their counterparts. If no Chinese troops were inside the Indian territory, where did the clashes take place and where were the soldiers killed? If no Chinese soldiers were inside our territory, why were 20 soldiers sacrificed? What is the government's reactions to China's claims over Galwan Valley?"
Shiv Sena deputy leader Priyanka Chaturvedi today sought the Centre's response on China's claim that the sovereignty over the Galwan Valley area in Ladakh belonged to it. Taking to Twitter, Chaturvedi said, "Yesterday PM Modi assured the nation that no posts/territory have been ceded to China, but here China claims Galwan Valley as theirs." "This is unacceptable and the government needs to clarify or respond to this. Have we ceded our Galwan valley or ousted the PLA from there? Nation wants to know," the recently elected Rajya Sabha member said.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian this morning reiterated Beijing’s claim on the Galwan Valley. Taking to Twitter, he called for a “step-by-step account of the Galwan clash”. “The Galwan Valley is located on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control in the west section of the China-India boundary. For many years, the Chinese border troops have been patrolling and on duty in this region," he tweeted.
Large scale movement of troops to Ladakh has been ordered by the Army from other parts of the country after the clash at Galwan between Indian and Chinese troops. While the build-up of forces had already taken place to a considerable extent after the Chinese forces had gathered in strength along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and in certain areas across it, the Galwan clash has led to a fresh strategic assessment. Highly placed sources informed The Indian Express that a formation from Uttar Pradesh has been ordered to move to Ladakh post-haste Thursday night. Similar movements have also been ordered from other areas too.
There is outrage across the country against China's "dastardly act" in Ladakh and the nation is united in its desire for revenge, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said on Friday. Kumar, who heads the JD(U), made the remarks at the all-party meeting convened by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the situation. "We grew up hearing slogans of 'Hindi Chini bhai bhai'. But despite India's efforts to have good relations with the neighbouring country, the latter's response has always left much to be desired," he was quoted as saying by PTI. "China's action has led to a situation wherein the entire nation is yearning for revenge. There is outrage over the incident," Kumar added.
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Friday called for aggressive steps to take back the Galwan Valley territory seized by the Chinese, and urged the Centre to issue an ultimatum to Beijing to vacate the occupied land immediately, with a clear warning that failure to do so would lead to serious consequences for them. “While India would also have to suffer some consequences of such an act, it could no longer afford to allow such intrusions and attacks on its territorial integrity to continue,” said Singh while talking informally to mediapersons at the Chandigarh air base where he had gone to pay tributes to the three sepoys whose mortal remains were flown in from the Galwan Valley. Declaring himself to be totally against following an appeasement policy with regards to China, Amarinder said past experience showed that when faced with aggression, the Chinese had always backed off. It was time to call their bluff, he asserted, reiterating that every Indian wants a befitting response to be given to the Chinese.
An Army officer presents the national flag to the brothers of Sepoy Gurtej Singh, at the soldier’s last rites at Birewala Dogran in Mansa, on Friday. (Express photo/Gurmeet Singh)
The political slugfest on Twitter between Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and Foreign Minister S Jaishankar about the death of 20 soldiers in a violent faceoff with the Chinese in Ladakh brought home the fact that the Indian troops were armed, but did not open fire. The minister said that “all troops on border duty always carry arms, especially when leaving post. Those at Galwan on 15 June did so. Long-standing practice (as per 1996 & 2005 agreements) not to use firearms during faceoffs”. The protocols Jaishankar referred to are from agreements signed between India and China in 1996 and 2005. The 1996 agreement is on Confidence-Building Measures in the Military Field Along the Line of Actual Control in the India-China Border Areas. “With a view to preventing dangerous military activities along the line of actual control in the India-China border areas… Neither side shall open fire, cause bio-degradation, use hazardous chemicals, conduct blast operations or hunt with guns or explosives within two kilometres from the line of actual control. This prohibition shall not apply to routine firing activities in small arms firing ranges,” says Article VI(1) of the 1996 agreement. Click here to read more.
The killing of 20 Indian soldiers by the Chinese PLA in eastern Ladakh this week has led to a serious trust deficit between the two countries at the political, diplomatic and military level, Lt Gen (retd) Syed Ata Hasnain told The Indian Express on Friday. India now needs to ensure its military preparedness is of the highest order even if immediate military action to restore status quo ante may not necessarily be an option at the moment, he added. “Now there is a complete trust deficit at the political, diplomatic or military level as far as China is concerned. We have to be mindful of the fact that the Chinese are looking for much more, some kind of permanent posturing in eastern Ladakh, to create a tactical advantage at places. We have to ensure that our military preparedness is of the highest order. That is already happening. Our Air Force is on alert. Our reserve formations of the Army have already moved or in the process of moving. It does not mean we are going to war but when trust is so low we cannot afford to take chances,” Hasnain said.
In a statement issued late on Friday evening, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said: “The Galwan Valley is located on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control in the west section of the China-India boundary. For many years, the Chinese border troops have been patrolling and on duty in this region. Since April this year, the Indian border troops have unilaterally and continuously built roads, bridges and other facilities at the LAC in the Galwan Valley.” “China”, Zhao said, “has lodged representations and protests on multiple occasions but India has gone even further to cross the LAC and make provocations. By the early morning of May 6, the Indian border troops, who have crossed the LAC by night and trespassed into China’s territory, have built fortification and barricades, which impeded the patrol of Chinese border troops. They deliberately made provocations in an attempt to unilaterally change the status quo of control and management. The Chinese border troops have been forced to take necessary measures to respond to the situation on the ground and strengthen management and control in the border areas.”
Hours after he received at Chandigarh airport the bodies of three of the 20 Army personnel killed in clashes with Chinese troops in Ladakh’s Galwan Valley, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Friday said India must tell the Chinese to vacate the region or face consequences. Singh told The Indian Express, “Of course there will be consequences for us as well but we can’t let this happen all the time…I am a hardliner. There can be talks with a sensible party but these people are not. They wait for an opportune time and then strike.” Dismissing talks of Chinese belligerence being fuelled by the August 5 move to abrogate Article 370 of the Constitution, and the bifurcation of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir into the Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh, Singh said, “What has abrogation got to do with the Chinese? They have been claiming Aksai Chin since 1962, Shaksgam Valley a little after that.”
While reviewing the Passing out Parade, Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria today said: "The security scenario in our region mandates that our armed forces remain prepared and vigilant. The development at LAC is a small snapshot of what we are required to handle at short notice. Inspite of unacceptable Chinese action after agreements reached during military talks and resultant loss of lives, all efforts are endeavoured to ensure that the current situation at LAC is resolved peacefully." He added: "But it should be very clear that we are well prepared and suitably deployed to respond to any contingency." The Air Chief also assured the nation that "we are determined to deliver and will never let your sacrifices of our braves in Galwan go in vain".
On Friday, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Japan, and the Maldives — expressed their condolences on the killing of 20 Indian soldiers. In Washington DC, the top US diplomat on China said Beijing’s actions that led to the clash on the night of June 15-16 were “similar to activity we’ve seen in the past on [other] border disputes”. Several recent steps taken by the Chinese in places including Hong Kong and India “have been not really constructive”, the US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs David Stilwell said.
Congress president Rahul Gandhi launched yet another attack on the Narendra Modi government over the Sino-Indian border row. He tweeted: "PM has surrendered Indian territory to Chinese aggression. If the land was Chinese: 1. Why were our soldiers killed? 2. Where were they killed?"
Tensions between India and China showed no signs of ending after Beijing on Friday said the Galwan Valley, that has always been under India’s control, was “located on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC)”. This claim, made by the Chinese Foreign Ministry, had earlier been made only by the spokesperson of the Western theatre command of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that neither has anyone intruded into the Indian territory nor has anyone captured any military posts. Follow our live blog for all the latest updates on the India-China border tension.