Army buildup, escalating India-China border tensions

 

 

Live Desk: Tensions at the border between India and China have spiked in recent weeks amid a flurry of media reports pointing to a series of skirmishes and military build-up by both sides. Neither countries’ leadership has issued an official comment on the stand-offs so far, which analysts say points to a shared desire not to heighten tensions further.

Yet speculation has still been rife into the other side’s motives, with both trading allegations of attempted military incursions, bringing the seven-decade old border dispute between the two Asian giants firmly back into focus.

According to Indian media reports, Indian and Chinese troops clashed in early May at two different sections of the Line of Actual Control that separates the two countries.

The skirmishes near Pangong lake in India’s Ladakh and the Naku La mountain pass in Sikkim resulted in injuries on both sides, the reports said.

Chinese state-owned tabloid Global Times has characterised China’s actions at the Line of Actual Control as a strong military response to “India’s illegal trespassing incident” and, on Sunday, reported that Beijing is likely to put its first domestically developed unmanned surveillance helicopter into service along the border. Indian media reports, meanwhile, claim it was Chinese troops that intruded in their thousands, pitched tents and dug trenches.

However, it is difficult to judge the true extent of what has occurred, as information is limited and most reports rely on anonymous government or military sources from either side. US asks India to resist China ‘aggression’ at Himalayan border.

Dhaka, 26, May (campuslive24.com)//Ait

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