China has released videos of last year’s clash between its troops and Indian soldiers in Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh. Twenty Indian soldiers were killed in the clash. China put the number of casualties on its side at four.
One video of the clash was shared on a Twitter handle named @detresfa on August 2. The account user is described as a freelance open-source intelligence analyst.
The 48-second video showed Chinese troops throwing stones at Indian soldiers. Chinese troops were also seen wading through knee-deep water. At one point in the video, they were adrift in the rapid waters of Galwan river.
The video was released hours after India and China released a joint statement on the 12th round of Corps Commanders talks. The meeting took place on July 31.
The countries said that the meeting was constructive but they couldn’t reach an agreement for disengagement at friction areas of Gogra and Hot Springs in eastern Ladakh.
The second video, shared on Twitter by China’s state-run news channel CGTN to mark Army Day on August 1, showed a confrontation between soldiers from both the sides. The focus of the video was Chen Hongjun, one of the four Chinese soldiers who died the clash.
Indo-China talks
Tensions between India and China escalated after the violent face-off on June 15, 2020. The two countries have held several rounds of military and diplomatic talks to resolve the matter.
On July 14, India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Tajikistan’s capital Dushanbe. They discussed the outstanding matters between the two countries along the Line of Actual Control.
Jaishankar said after the meeting that the complete restoration and maintenance of peace in border areas was essential to the development of the relationship between India and China.
China told India that it was ready for a mutually acceptable solution to the border conflict. The Chinese foreign minister acknowledged that his country’s ties with India were still at low point, but said the border situation had “generally been easing” after troops withdrew from Pangong Lake.
In June, a report by Business Standard claimed that Chinese and Indian troops clashed in Galwan Valley again. However, the Indian Army refuted the story as “false and baseless”.
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