File: Indian and Chinese troops participate in joint military exercise in China (Representative photo / Reuters)
NEW DELHI: In a big step in the context of an ongoing conflict with China in eastern Ladakh, India is likely to transmit to Russia that his troops will not participate in the multinational military exercise Kavkaz-2020 where Chinese and Pakistani troops will also be.
the Indian authorities They have also taken into account the worsening of the global Covid-19 situation, where only India witnesses more than 70,000 positive cases daily to make a decision regarding participation in the war games taking place in the area. of Astrakhan in southern Russia.
“A high-level meeting was held in the South Block in which the Minister of Foreign Affairs, S Jaishankar, and the Chief of Defense Staff, General Bipin Rawat, were present. After the meeting, it was discussed that it would not be correct to participate in the multilateral exercise where Chinese and Pakistani military personnel would also be present, “defense sources told ANI here.
Full coverage – LAC deadlock
The sources said that while India is caught in a military conflict with the Chinese in eastern Ladakh and on high alert along the 4,000 kilometers of the Real control (LAC), it cannot be a regular business for us to participate in multilateral military exercises with them.
India and China clashed in the Galwan Valley on June 15 in which 20 Indian soldiers lost their lives. The Chinese side also suffered casualties, but has declined to release the figures.
The sources said that India’s defense minister would visit Russia on September 4-6 for the defense ministers meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, but the Indian representative is unlikely to hold talks with his Chinese counterpart.
During the meeting, India may raise the point of expansionist policies of the Chinese along the Indian border, but a final decision on the matter will be made closer to the event, the sources said.
India was invited by Russia to participate in the three-service exercise with a contingent of around 200 people to southern Russia in September for the multilateral Kavkaz-2020.
The exercise is being carried out in the southern Russian province of Astrakhan, where the member countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the countries of Central Asia will participate.
The Tsentr exercise last year was attended by India, Pakistan and all SCO member countries.
India and China have been involved in a territorial conflict in eastern Ladakh and the northern subsector (Ladakh) where Chinese troops have transgressed in multiple areas and refused to fully withdraw in areas such as the Finger, Depsang Plains, and Gogra heights. Both sides have amassed more than 40,000 soldiers on their respective LAC sides with the induction of heavy weaponry, including long-range artillery and tanks.
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