Indian army soldiers rest next to artillery guns at a makeshift transit camp before heading to Ladakh, near Baltal, southeast of Srinagar, June 16, 2020. (Reuters Photo/File)
India-China Border Face-off Latest News Live Update: The Major General-level talks between India and China in the wake of the violent faceoff in Ladakh’s Galwan valley ended on an inconclusive note on Wednesday. This was the second meeting between GOC 3 Division and his Chinese counterpart at PP14 on the Line of Actual Control.
The latest development comes even as External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, in a phone conversation earlier today, “agreed that the overall situation would be handled in a responsible manner, and both sides would implement the disengagement understanding of 6 June sincerely”. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), in a statement, said, “Neither side would take any action to escalate matters and instead, ensure peace and tranquillity as per bilateral agreements and protocols.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, meanwhile, said the sacrifices of soldiers along the border “will not go in vain”. He has called for an all-party meeting at 5 pm on Friday, June 19 to discuss the situation along the India-China border. Presidents of various political parties are expected to take part in the virtual meeting.
In the worst flare-up on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in more than five decades, 20 Indian Army personnel, including the commanding officer of 16 Bihar, were killed Monday night in violent face-off with Chinese troops in the Galwan valley of Ladakh where disengagement of troops on either side was underway. The Army said there were casualties on both sides, although Beijing was silent on People’s Liberation Army (PLA) losses.
People stand by the banks of the Pangong Lake, near the India-China border in Ladakh. (AP Photo: Channi Anand)
Stating that the conscience of the nation has been "bruised", former president Pranab Mukherjee said it needs to be addressed satisfactorily by the entire political class through a bipartisan consensus. "The onus of achieving which lies mostly on the Government of India, by taking various stakeholders, including the Armed Forces on board. It is for the Government of the Day, to ensure that nothing but our National Interests are kept supreme," he said. The former president also offered his condolences on the supreme sacrifice made by the Army personnel.
A fresh round of talks Wednesday at the level of Major Generals after Monday’s violent faceoff between Indian and Chinese soldiers failed to break the deadlock between the two sides, with the meeting ending on an inconclusive note. This was the second meeting in two days between GOC 3 Division and his Chinese counterpart at PP14 on the Line of Actual Control (LAC). Tuesday’s meeting had resulted in bringing down tensions in the area which had been running high following the violent faceoff which led to the death of 20 soldiers. Read more here
Family members and officials pay their last respects to Colonel Santosh Babu at the Hakimpet Air Force Station in Telangana. Babu, the Commanding Officer of 16 Bihar, was one of the 20 Army personnel killed in a clash with Chinese troops in the Galwan valley of Ladakh. Read more here
Our deputy editor Sushant Singh explains 👇
As the two countries are still talking at military and diplomatic levels, any escalation into a major conflict looks some distance away at this moment.
But conflict situations have a dynamic of their own, and events can overtake the best laid plans. A military conflict, if it occurs, can be localised to one area, can be along the whole border, or can be in any one sector. But unless there is another provocation and crisis, the two sides should be able to resolve the situation peacefully.
That said, the government will place the armed forces on full alert, moving some of them forward for an early response in case of any eventuality.
Simultaneously, it will continue to use diplomatic channels to resolve the crisis, while controlling the domestic messaging to avoid inflaming public emotions that can create pressure on it to act strongly against China. The execution of that strategy will determine the course of the future action on China.
Our deputy editor Sushant Singh explains 👇
There were hopes of an early disengagement and de-escalation after conciliatory statements from both countries in the past few days, after the meeting at the level of Corps Commander on June 6. There were meetings being held at the level of various other military commanders from June 10, which were to continue for 10 days, by when the disengagement process would have been decided and finalised.
But after this incident, that process is likely to take a back seat, and an early resolution now looks unlikely. China has reasserted its claim over Galwan Valley, and its army has made sharp statements alleging that Indian soldiers twice crossed the LAC.
The MEA too, has categorically stated that the Chinese had violated the LAC in the Galwan Valley region, which had led to the current situation. These allegations and counter-allegations, along with the heightened public sentiment on the deaths of so many soldiers, will test any process towards resolution. Read more here
Our deputy editor Sushant Singh explains 👇
Yes, tensions have already been running high at various places on the Ladakh border where Indian and Chinese soldiers have been facing each other on the LAC since May. The latest incident has added to the tensions, but there have been no reports of any other clashes at the border. Read more here
Our deputy editor Sushant Singh explains 👇
A meeting at the level of Major Generals of both armies took place at PP14 in the area on Tuesday, which continued until late in the evening. It brought the situation under control, and the Indian side was able to collect all the bodies. The Chinese were given permission to bring in helicopters to ferry their injured back. Read more here
Our deputy editor Sushant Singh explains 👇
The official statements put out by the Army and the Ministry of External Affairs have no details of any deaths or injuries to Chinese soldiers, although the first statement by the Army on Tuesday was amended to say that there were casualties “on both sides”. The Chinese government or the PLA too, have not provided any details of soldiers killed or injured in the clash.
The only numbers that have come from are from the news agency ANI, which has quoted unnamed sources claiming that as per radio transmission intercepts, 43 Chinese soldiers were either killed or injured in the clash. Another report in usnews.com has cited “American intelligence” to say that 35 Chinese troops, including an officer, are believed to have died. Read more here
Our deputy editor Sushant Singh explains 👇
Since the time tensions have erupted on the Ladakh border, there have been reports of some scuffles between the soldiers of both the armies. At Pangong Tso on the intervening night of May 5/6, there was a major scuffle between the soldiers in which more than 70 Indian soldiers were injured. In most of these scuffles, the Chinese have used bats, clubs, sticks and stones to cause major injuries.
In Monday’s clash, besides the use of these blunt objects to cause injuries, some soldiers, it has been learnt, could have been pushed into the fast-flowing Galwan river. Most of the deaths were due to injuries aggravated by the intense cold in the high-altitude area. Read more here
Our deputy editor Sushant Singh explains 👇
No, this is as per the drill followed by both sides in the border areas to avoid inadvertent escalation by opening fire. This is in tune with the 1996 agreement between the two countries on Confidence Building Measures in the Military Field Along the Line of Actual Control in the India-China Border Areas, which imposed a lot of restrictions on military equipment, exercises, blasts, and aircraft in the vicinity of the LAC.
Our deputy editor Sushant Singh explains 👇
Tensions had been running high in the area for the past few weeks, with a large number of soldiers and military equipment deployed along the LAC by both sides. Even though the LAC in Galwan Valley was never disputed by the two sides, the Chinese had moved into the Indian side of the LAC. After the meeting at the level of Corps Commanders on June 6, negotiations had been conducted between local military commanders of both the armies for a mutually agreed disengagement process.
As part of that process, a buffer zone had been agreed to be created between the LAC and the junction of the Shyok and Galwan rivers to avoid any faceoff between the two armies. The two armies were to move back by a kilometre each in that area as a first step.
When Colonel B Santosh Babu, who was monitoring this process, noticed that a Chinese camp was still existing in the area, he went to get it removed. This soon led to fisticuffs and blows being exchanged, resulting in deaths and injuries. Read more here
Our deputy editor Sushant Singh explains 👇
Not really.
If such a large number of soldiers could be killed without firing a round, it means that these deaths were far more brutal than they would have been had guns and rifles been used. However, that it remained restricted to a physical brawl points to the fact that there was no escalation to a kinetic level — rifles, howitzers, rockets, missiles, and fighter jets. China and India are both nuclear powers, and any climbing up the escalation ladder is fraught.
But it could be a hope hanging by a slender thread if the history between the two sides is any precedent to go by. Even at Nathu La, before the military engagement escalated to artillery guns and threats of fighter jets, there was a scuffle between the soldiers of the two armies on the border. Read more here
It has been nearly 24 hours that news of the violent clash between Indian and Chinese soldiers in Ladakh broke. Our deputy editor Sushant Singh explains what happened at Galwan? How serious is the issue? and What happens from here?
Is the situation serious?
Yes, undoubtedly so. This is the first time after the 1962 War that soldiers have died in clashes on the India-China border in Ladakh. Even otherwise, the last deaths on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) were an ambush of an Assam Rifles patrol in Arunachal Pradesh by the Chinese in 1975. But the last real military engagement between the two armies was at Nathu La in Sikkim in 1967, in which 88 Indian soldiers lost their lives, and more than 300 Chinese soldiers were killed.
But all these incidents were prior to the two countries signing, starting from 1993, various agreements for maintaining peace and tranquility on the border.
Moreover, at least 20 soldiers including a Commanding Officer lost their lives on a single day in Galwan on Monday. To put that number in context, when 19 soldiers lost their lives in Uri in 2016, the Narendra Modi government launched surgical strikes across the Line of Control. Read more here
The Army offered its deepest condolences to the bereaved families of soldiers killed in the violent face-off with Chinese troops in the Galwan valley of Ladakh. "We stand in our resolve towards protecting the sovereignty and integrity of our country. Their sacrifices will not go in vain," the Army tweeted.
Offering his condolences to the fallen soldiers, President Ram Nath Kovind, tweeted, "As Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, I bow to the exemplary courage and supreme sacrifice of our soldiers to protect the sovereignty and integrity of the country." He said those who laid down their lives in Galwan valley have upheld the best traditions of the Indian armed forces. "Their valour will be eternally etched in the memory of the nation," he said.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh and a government job for kin of each of the two soldiers from the state who died during clashes with the Chinese army at Galwan Valley. Rajesh Orang of Birbhum district and Bipul Roy of Alipurduar were among the 20 Indian Army personnel killed in the fierce clash on Monday night. "My heartfelt condolences to the families of the brave men martyred at #GalwanValley. I'm at pain to say that two of them belonged to West Bengal: Sepoy Rajesh Orang (Vill Belgoria, PS Md Bazar, Birbhum) & Bipul Roy on General Duty (Vill Bindipara, PS Samuktala, Alipurduar)," Banerjee tweeted.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday hit out at Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, asking why he insulted the Indian Army by not naming China in his tweet over the killing of 20 Indian soldiers in eastern Ladakh's Galwan Valley. He also asked the defence minister why it took him two days to condole the deaths and why did he continue to address poll rallies when the soldiers were being killed.
Reacting on the violent Galwan face-off, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat said that China betrayed by attacking on the unarmed Indian soldiers and repeated 1962 in a way. “China has once again betrayed us by attacking our soldiers while we were having continuous peace dialogues. And the way our soldiers were attacked there, China has repeated 1962,” CM Rawat told reporters. “But the way our soldiers gave a befitting reply to China and sacrificed their lives, China should understand that this is India of 2020 not what it was in 1962. Indian army can face anyone. Now, China’ misconception should be cleared,” Rawat said.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi held a phone conversation this afternoon in the wake of recent developments in Ladakh. In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said, "EAM conveyed the protest of the Government of India in the strongest terms on the violent face-off in Galwan Valley on 15 June 2020."
In the statement, the MEA said Jaishankar recalled that at the meeting of senior military commanders held on June 6, an agreement was reached on de-escalation and disengagement along the LAC. "Ground commanders were meeting regularly to implement this consensus throughout the last week. While there was some progress, the Chinese side sought to erect a structure in Galwan valley on our side of the LAC. While this became a source of dispute, the Chinese side took pre-meditated and planned action that was directly responsible for the resulting violence and casualties. It reflected an intent to change the facts on ground in violation of all our agreements to not change the status quo," it said.
It further said the EAM underlined that this unprecedented development will have a serious impact on the bilateral relationship. "The need of the hour was for the Chinese side to reassess its actions and take corrective steps," the MEA said, adding that it was agreed the overall situation would be handled in a responsible manner, and both sides would implement the disengagement understanding of June 6 sincerely.