A Brigade Commander-level flag meeting was in progress at Chushul to resolve the issues, the Army said
Indian army trucks drive near Pangong Tso lake near the India China border in India’s Ladakh area | File Photo | Photo Credit: AP
In an escalation of the ongoing standoff on the border in Ladakh, Chinese troops carried out aggressive moves to change the status quo on the South Bank of Pangong Tso and the attempts had been thwarted, the Army said on Monday.
“On the night of August 29/30 2020, PLA troops violated the previous consensus arrived at during military and diplomatic engagements during the ongoing standoff in Eastern Ladakh and carried out provocative military movements to change the status quo,” the Army said in a statement. Indian troops pre-empted this PLA activity on the Southern Bank of the Pangong Tso Lake, undertook measures to strengthen our positions and thwart Chinese intentions to unilaterally change facts on ground, the Army said.
A Brigade Commander-level flag meeting was in progress at Chushul to resolve the issues, the Army said adding, they were committed to maintaining peace and tranquillity through dialogue, but was also equally determined to protect its territorial integrity.
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The Army is not sharing any operational details at this point to maintain operational security. The standoff in Ladakh has been ongoing since early May and several rounds of military and diplomatic talks have failed to end the impasse. China has undertaken massive mobilisation along the LAC, and PLA troops have built structures inside Indian territory at several locations.
The first phase of disengagement undertaken in early July remains incomplete with disengagement completed at Galwan valley and Patrolling Point (PP) 15 in Gogra-Hot springs area. However, only limited disengagement has been undertaken at PP 17A in Gogra-Hot springs and it has barely begun at Pangong Tso. Chinese troops have only moved back from the base of Finger 4, the mountain spur, to Finger 5 but remain to occupy the ridgelines of Finger 4 where India’s claim extends till Finger 8, while it has always held till Finger 4.
A defence source said that there was movement by PLA troops in the Chushul sector following which the Indian Army too repositioned its troops as a precaution. Around 25 PLA soldiers intruded across the LAC and they were blocked by Indian troops and asked to go back during which there was some jostling, a defence source said. Later around 100 soldiers were seen below the Black Top hill just across the LAC and the Army maintained additional presence to foil any misadventure, the source added.
There is already massive build-up of troops in the area by both the sides. The area had witnessed pitched battles during the 1962 war.
With inputs from The Hindu
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Kashmir Today staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)