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SRINAGAR, India (AP) – The Indian military said it detained a Chinese soldier on Monday in the remote Ladakh region, where the two countries are locked in a month-long military standoff along their disputed mountainous border.
The soldier, Cpl. Wang Ya Long of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army was detained within the Indian-controlled Demchok area of Ladakh and will soon be released, the army said in a statement.
He said the soldier “had strayed” across the de facto border along the eastern section of what is known as the Royal Line of Control, a flexible demarcation that separates the areas controlled by India and China.
“In accordance with established protocols, it will be returned to Chinese officials at the Chushul-Moldo meeting point after completing the formalities,” the statement said.
China did not immediately comment on the apprehension of the soldier.
The high-altitude confrontation between the Asian giants began in early May with a fierce brawl and erupted into hand-to-hand combat with clubs, stones and fists on June 15 that left 20 Indian soldiers dead. China is also believed to have suffered casualties, but has not provided details.
China detained at least 10 Indian soldiers, including four officers, after the deadly brawl. They were returned three days later after intense military and diplomatic negotiations.
The Indian army statement on Monday said that the Indian side had received an investigation from the Chinese army “into the whereabouts of the missing soldier.”
The soldier “has received medical assistance that includes oxygen, food and warm clothing to protect him from the vagaries of extreme altitude and harsh weather conditions,” the statement said.
India and China have each stationed tens of thousands of soldiers backed by artillery, tanks and fighter jets and are preparing for a harsh winter in the cold, desert region, where temperatures can drop to minus 50 degrees Celsius (minus 58 Fahrenheit). ).
Nuclear-armed rivals have accused each other of crossing into rival territory and shooting for the first time in 45 years.
The parties have held several rounds of talks with military, diplomatic and political officials, including negotiations between their foreign and defense ministers in Moscow last month. Although the fighting has persisted, the talks appear to have calmed the situation along the border, with no further military attacks reported for more than a month.
The fiercely contested Royal Line of Control separates the Chinese and Indian controlled territories from Ladakh in the west to the eastern Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, which China claims in full. It is broken in parts where the Himalayan nations of Nepal and Bhutan border China.
India claims that the Chinese-controlled Aksai Chin Plateau is part of the Ladakh region.
According to India, the control line is 3,488 kilometers (2,167 miles) long, while China says it is considerably shorter. The line divides the areas of physical control rather than territorial claims.
Relations between the two countries have often been strained, in part due to their unmarked border. They fought a border war in 1962 that spread to Ladakh and ended in an uneasy truce. Since then, troops have guarded the indefinite border and have occasionally fought. They have agreed not to attack each other with firearms.
India unilaterally declared Ladakh a federal territory and separated it from disputed Kashmir in August 2019, ending the semi-autonomous status of Indian-administered Kashmir. He also vowed to reclaim the Aksai Chin plateau.
China was one of the first countries to strongly condemn the measure, raising it in international forums, including the UN Security Council.
