Chinese start bringing more troops in area near Galwan
Local commanders of Indian and Chinese Armies are holding talks to defuse simmering tension in some pockets of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh. While the face-off on the “Finger Five” area of Pangong lake in eastern Ladakh on May 5 and 6 leading to a brawl between troops of both sides has more or less ended with personnel moving back, the Chinese have now started bringing in more troops in an area near Galwan river.
The Chinese have pitched tents some distance away from the Indian positions leading to tension. This region in Ladakh has seen stand-offs in the past besides the two armies fighting the 1962 war there too.
Not willing to take any chances and getting caught off-guard, the Indian side too has bolstered its troops and is maintaining a close vigil on the Chinese activities. However, the Chinese, so far, have not tried to transgress into the Indian territory, sources said here on Wednesday.
Sources here said the Chinese enhanced their activities by bringing in more troops and pitching tents almost ten days back in the strategically important Galwan valley. This build up leading to more construction activities, including roads and permanent structure, may also start in the disputed region, sources said. However, the Chinese claim the Indians entered its territory and built fortifications.
In this backdrop, the two sides have held some rounds of parleys at the local commander level including on Tuesday, sources said. The talks held as per the mutually agreed mechanism may be held at the more senior levels in the coming days, they said.
Meanwhile, China has blamed the Indian Army for coming into its territory and “blocking” its patrols and “attempting to unilaterally change the status” on the LAC between the two countries in Sikkim and Ladakh.
The official statement by the Chinese foreign ministry on Tuesday about the recent stand-offs in Naku La in Sikkim which saw exchange of blows said the “the Indian Army has crossed the line across the western section of the Sino-Indian border and the Sikkim section to enter Chinese territory”.
The statement also said the Chinese side had taken up the matter with India, asking the Indian side to “immediately withdraw the personnel across the line, restore the status quo of the relevant areas, strictly restrict the frontline troops, observe the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries and the agreements signed by the two sides, and jointly maintain peace and stability in the border areas.”