New Delhi/Srinagar - India's army said on
Tuesday 20 of its soldiers had been killed in clashes with
Chinese troops at a disputed border site, in a major escalation
of a weeks-long standoff between the two Asian giants in the
western Himalayas.
China's foreign ministry confirmed there had been a "violent
physical confrontation" on Monday in the border area. It made no
mention of casualties but India's foreign ministry said there
had been casualties on both sides.
An Indian government source said the troops had fought with
iron rods and stones, and that no shots had been fired.
The deaths were the first since the last major border clash
in 1967 between the nuclear-armed neighbours - also the world's
two most populous countries - which have been unable to settle
the dispute along their lengthy frontier.
China and India have traded accusations over who was to
blame for Monday's clashes in the snow deserts of Ladakh, which
came after military commanders held meetings to resolve the
situation.
Since early May, hundreds of soldiers have fronted up
against each other at three locations, each side accusing the
other of trespassing.
On Monday night, a group of soldiers came to blows in the
Galwan Valley, the Indian army said in a statement, adding that
the two sides had now disengaged.
The two sides had been discussing ways to de-escalate but at
some point, an Indian government source said, China's People's
Liberation Army had turned on a group of Indian soldiers that
included an officer.
"They attacked with iron rods, the commanding officer was
grievously injured and fell, and when that happened, more
soldiers swarmed to the area and attacked with stones," said the
source, who had been briefed on the matter.
Standoff points between India and China. IANS Infographics
The Chinese side brought in reinforcements and the brawl
went on for a couple of hours, the source said.
"Both sides suffered casualties that could have been avoided
had the agreement at the higher level been scrupulously followed
by the Chinese side," Indian foreign ministry spokesman Anurag
Srivastava said in a statement.
A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said there had been a
serious violation of a consensus reached by the two countries.
"What's shocking is that on June 15, the Indian side
severely violated our consensus and twice crossed the border
line and provoked and attacked the Chinese forces, causing a
violent physical confrontation between the two border forces,"
Zhao Lijian told reporters in Beijing.
This satellite photo shows the Galwan Valley area in the Ladakh region near the Line of Actual Control between India and China. A clash high in the Himalayas between the world’s two most populated countries claimed the lives of 20 Indian soldiers in a border region that the two nuclear armed neighbors have disputed for decades, Indian officials said. Picture: Planet Labs via AP
'EXTREMELY SERIOUS'
India and China fought a brief but bloody border war in 1962
and distrust has occasionally led to flare-ups ever since.
Border guards have had skirmishes and fist fights when
patrols have confronted each other, but there has been no loss
of life from clashes at the border since 1967.
"This is extremely, extremely serious, this is going to
vitiate whatever dialogue was going on," former Indian army
commander D. S. Hooda said.
Military experts say one reason for the face-off is that
India has been building roads and airfields to improve
connectivity and narrow the gap with China's far superior
infrastructure.
At Galwan, India completed a road leading to an airfield
last October. China has asked India to stop all construction.
India says it is operating on its side of the Line of Actual
Control, the de facto border.