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NEW DELHI: Border tensions between India and China have once again escalated with at least two incidents of violent clashes and shootings between rival troops in Ladakh and Sikkim During the past week, he left several soldiers wounded on both sides.
The Army downplayed the incidents as “temporary and short-term confrontations” that were resolved by “local commanders according to mutually accepted protocols” through dialogue and flag meetings. “Such troop confrontations routinely occur during summers due to differing perceptions of the unresolved boundary,” said a senior officer.
Sources said the first incident took place from May 5 to 6 on the Indian side in the Pangong Tso East Ladakh sector, a flash point between the two countries for a long time, after “aggressive patrol” by People’s Liberation army the troops were blocked by Indian army soldiers
“There was a fight, in which some soldiers from both sides were injured. The issues were resolved after a meeting between the sector commanders at the brigadier level. The troops, after withdrawing, are now on their respective sides, “said a source.
The second confrontation took place at an altitude of more than 5,000 meters in the Naku La sector in northern Sikkim, in which more than a dozen Indian and Chinese soldiers were wounded in the physical brawl and the throwing of stones, on Saturday afternoon.
The tense confrontation in this incident was also sparked after Indian soldiers blocked an “aggressive” Chinese patrol in the area, which is ahead of Muguthang. Both sides initially rushed additional troops to the site, but then separated after a dialogue between local commanders.
The last major violent clash between Chinese and Indian troops took place on the north bank of the 134 km long Pangong Tso (Tso means lake), two-thirds of which are controlled by China as it stretches from Tibet to Ladakh in September 2019, as reported by TOI.
The sources said the “renewed muscle flexion” by the EPL, which sparked clashes last week, took place after “a long time.” Simmering tensions persist between the two mutually aligned armies along the 3,488 km Current Control Line (LAC), which stretches from eastern Ladakh to Arunachal Pradesh.
However, there has been a significant reduction in border tensions since the 73-day troop confrontation in the Bhutanese territory of Doklam, near the Sikkim-Bhutan-Tibet triple union in June-August 2017, which saw the two armies move additional infantry battalions, tanks, artillery, and missile units toward the border.
Although the two armies disconnected from the fighting site after hectic diplomatic parliaments, the EPL has built military infrastructure and heliports, as well as permanently stationed some troops in northern Doklam.
During the Doklam clash, Indian and Chinese troops also clashed and attacked each other with stones and iron roads in the disputed “Finger-5 to Finger-8” area (mountain spurs) on the north bank of Pangong Tso el August 15th. 2017.
Unlike the Line of Control with Pakistan, where fierce cross-border shooting duels are the norm, it’s actually a battle of nerves across LAC with China in the form of troop engagements and transgressions without firing a single shot. There are 23 identified “contested and sensitive areas” throughout LAC, where rival troops often resort to aggressive patrols to reclaim contested territories.
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