India to double military presence on western sector of China border

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
8 Mar 2024 16:23
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A spokesperson for China's Foreign Ministry says that India's move is not "conducing to easing tensions."

An Indian soldier at Bumla Pass on the India-China border in Arunachal in 2012 (AFP)

India is deploying 10,000 troops to the western part of its disputed border with China while reassigning 9,000 soldiers to a new military command on the same front, Bloomberg reported on Thursday citing sources.

Over 500 km of the borders - out of a 3,800-km overall shared frontier - in the states of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh will be covered by the almost 20,000-strong force, the sources said.

The dispute between the two escalated in 2020 with a fatal clash in Ladakh, marking the most serious deadly encounter in four decades.

Last August, Indian and Chinese military commanders agreed to expedite efforts to resolve the longstanding border issue. However, the latest round of talks last month did not see any breakthroughs.

Shortly after today's report was released, India's Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaisankar claimed that Beijing did not commit to its agreements with his country.

According to the minister, this has raised questions regarding China's "intentions" and the "stability of the relationship" between the two neighbors.

'Not condusive to easing tensions'

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said that Beijing believes that India's move does not benefit efforts to reduce tensions.

"China is committed to working with India to safeguard the peace and stability of the border areas," Mao Ning said. "We believe that India’s practice is not conducive to safeguarding peace and is not conducive to easing tensions.”

"India's increase in military deployments in border areas does not help to calm the situation in the border areas or to safeguard peace and safety in these areas," she added.