New clashes reported between Indian and Chinese Military at remote borders
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*NEW DELHI/BEIJING – India and China have accused each other of firing in the air during a new confrontation on their border in the western Himalayas, in a further escalation of military tension between the nuclear-armed nations.*
Hundreds of troops are in eyeball-to-eyeball proximity along the remote border, which erupted in a clash in June that killed 20 Indian soldiers in hand-to-hand fighting, Reuters has reported.
Both sides have observed a long-held protocol to avoid using firearms on the sensitive, undemarcated frontier, though this agreement has not prevented casualties.
On Monday night, troops of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) attempted to close in on a forward Indian position at the Line of Actual Control (LAC), or the de factor border, in the Ladakh sector, the Indian army said in a statement.
“And when dissuaded by own (Indian troops), PLA troops fired a few rounds in the air in an attempt to intimidate own troops,” the army said in a statement on Tuesday, adding that the Indian side acted with restraint.
“At no stage has the Indian Army transgressed across the LAC or resorted to use of any aggressive means, including firing,” it said.
But China said the Indians had breached the informal border through the southern bank of the Pangong Tso lake, where tension has been rising for more than a week.
