Category: FOREIGN

India has accused Chinese troops of meticulously preparing an attack on its soldiers on the treacherous Himalayan border, claiming they erected a tent on the Indian side, dammed a river, brought in machinery and then lay in wait with stones and batons wrapped in barbed wire, The Guardian reported.

The incident on Monday night, in which 20 Indian soldiers died and 76 were injured, was the worst violence between India and China in 45 years. China has not said whether it sustained any casualties.

Ten Indian soldiers who were reportedly captured by Chinese troops during the attack were back in India on Thursday night. China said it had not seized any Indian personnel.

Both sides continue to blame the other for the clash. China is now claiming sovereignty over the Galwan valley in Ladakh, where the attack happened, and has accused Indian troops of three times crossing into its territory. “The responsibility entirely lies with Indian side,” said Zhao Lijian, a spokesman for the Chinese ministry of foreign affairs.

India accused China of carrying out a “premeditated and planned action” on its side of the border. Satellite images of the Galwan Valley taken by Planet Labs, an imaging company, in the days before the clash appear to show increased activity on the Chinese side, including the damming of a river and the movement of troops and machinery close to the disputed and poorly defined border.

The Australian Strategic Policy Institute said its analysis of satellite images found there was “evidence that strongly suggests People’s Liberation Army forces have been regularly crossing into Indian territory temporarily on routine patrol routes”.

Indian officials said commanders from the Indian and Chinese sides had met on 13 June and agreed to each retreat back two kilometres in the Galwan valley and Pangong Lake area.

But rather than retreating, the officials said, Chinese troops erected a tent in disputed territory close to what is known as Patrolling Point 14. They said India’s 16 Bihar Regiment, led by Col Santosh Babu, dismantled the structure in an attempt to push back the PLA troops.

According to accounts given to the Hindu newspaper, when Babu and his troops later approached the Chinese side to challenge the refusal to retreat, they were ambushed by PLA forces on the steep mountain precipice. The Chinese allegedly unblocked the dammed river, releasing a rush of water to destabilise Indian soldiers, and they attacked with stones and makeshift spiked weapons.

Indian troops retaliated, it was reported, and reinforcements were summoned on both sides until there were upwards of 600 soldiers in hand-to-hand combat in the dark and icy conditions. No shots were fired.

There were reports that the Indian soldiers were unarmed, but India’s external affairs minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, said: “Let us get the facts straight. All troops on border duty always carry arms, especially when leaving post. Those at Galwan on 15 June did so.”

Due to the treacherous conditions, many of the bodies of the Indian soldiers could not be retrieved until the next morning, by helicopters working with troops and border police. The injured were taken to hospitals in the Ladakh city of Leh.

India and China have agreed to continue the process of disengagement that was first agreed on 6 June, and discussions are ongoing through political and diplomatic channels. Army generals from both sides have also had three days of talks at Patrolling Point 14. However, the Indian army and air force in Ladakh remain on high alert.

In an armed conflict between two nuclear-armed neighbours, at least 20 Indian soldiers were killed in the Galwan Valley in Ladakh after a “violent face-off” with Chinese troops ensued.

According to Indian media reports, both sides “have disengaged” after 17 Indian troops were injured.

The injured troops “exposed to sub-zero temperatures in the high altitude terrain have succumbed to their injuries”, ANI reported, adding this had brought the death toll, from the earlier reported three to 20.

According to earlier reports by Indian media, three troops, including an officer and two soldiers were among those killed near the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

“During the de-escalation process underway in the Galwan Valley, a violent face-off took place yesterday night with casualties. The loss of lives on the Indian side includes an officer and two soldiers. Senior military officials of the two sides are currently meeting at the venue to defuse the situation,” an official statement said.

Meanwhile, British news outlet The Telegraph, quoting Indian army sources, reported that four soldiers are currently missing and a further 32 “were handed back after being captured”.

Indian media also reported that 40 Chinese soldiers were killed in the clash, however, the news was soon retracted.

India and China have been locked in a standoff in the western Himalayas for weeks, though there had been no casualties on either side.

In Beijing, Zhao Lijian, a spokesman for the Foreign Ministry, said that Indian forces had twice crossed the border illegally on Monday and attacked Chinese personnel. He said the Chinese side had “lodged strong protests” but continued to work toward resolving the tensions between the two countries.

According to the Hindustan Times, Beijing accused the Indian army of provoking and attacking Chinese soldiers after a border meeting to de-escalate the ongoing tension led to a “physical conflict” between the two sides. Reuters’ report suggested that Beijing warned New Delhi not to take unilateral action or stir up trouble.

The Asian giants have rival claims to vast swathes of territory along their 3,500 kilometers Himalayan border, but the disputes have remained largely peaceful since a border war in 1962.