China early on Tuesday said its border troops took India has squarely blamed China for the tensions along the LAC in Ladakh over the past four months and said the only way forward was through negotiations – reflecting the impasse created by Beijing’s fresh attempts to alter the status quo.
“countermeasures” after the Indian army crossed the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and fired “warning shots” near the Pangong Tso lake in eastern Ladakh.
Border troops of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) were “forced to take countermeasures” after Indian army soldiers fired at them near the Shenpao mountain region near the south bank of Pangong Tso lake, a statement issued by China’s western theatre command (WAC) said in a statement issued early on Tuesday.
The Chinese statement, however, did not explain what the “countermeasures” were.
The statement from the PLA’s WAC would mean that shots were fired at the disputed Sino-India border for the first time in four decades.
India has squarely blamed China for the tensions along the LAC in Ladakh over the past four months and said the only way forward was through negotiations – reflecting the impasse created by Beijing’s fresh attempts to alter the status quo along the disputed border.
In a statement issued in Mandarin, and tweeted by state media, WAC spokesperson Colonel Zhang Shuili said Chinese border defence troops were forced to take countermeasures to stabilise the situation after Indian soldiers troops “outrageously fired warning shots to PLA border patrol soldiers who were about to negotiate”.
“We demand the Indian side to immediately stop dangerous moves, withdraw personnel who crossed the LAC at once, strictly control frontline troops, seriously investigate and punish the personnel who fired the provocative shot and ensure similar incidents won’t take place again,” Zhang added.
“The PLA WAC troops will firmly fulfill duties and missions and resolutely safeguard national territorial sovereignty,” Zhang said.
The last time shots were fired at the LAC was in the Tulung La area of Arunachal Pradesh in 1975.❐
