Following the Galwan clash in June 2020, China had warned United States officials to not interfere with its relationship with India, a Pentagon report published claimed on Tuesday .
Twenty Indian soldiers were killed in the clash. China had put the number of casualties on its side at four. Since the clash, India and China have been locked in a border standoff.
The 2022 China Military Power Report said that throughout 2021, the Chinese military sustained deployment of forces and continued building infrastructure along the Line of Actual Control.
The report said the China’s actions had continued while negotiation with India to resolve the border conflict made minimal progress as both sides resisted losing perceived advantages on the border.
“Throughout the standoff, PRC [People’s Republic of China] officials sought to downplay the severity of the crisis, emphasising Beijing’s intent to preserve border stability and prevent the standoff from
harming other areas of its bilateral relationship with India,” the Pentagon said.
It added: “The PRC seeks to prevent border tensions from causing India to partner more closely with the United States. PRC officials have warned US officials to not interfere with the PRC’s relationship with India.”
The report also described the Galwan clash, in which the soldiers used rocks, batons and clubs wrapped in barbed wire at multiple locations along the Line of Actual Control, as one of the deadliest incidents between the Indian and the Chinese Army in the last 46 years.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, the Indian and US troops participated in a high-altitude training exercise at Uttarakhand’s Auli hill station that is situated near the disputed border area with China, reported the Associated Press.
Earlier, these exercises had taken place in other parts of northern India but this year’s drills were being held only about 100 kilometers from the Line of Actual Control.
The exercises focus on surveillance, mountain-warfare skills, casualty evacuation and combat medical aid in adverse terrain and climatic conditions, India’s Defense Ministry said. It will also include humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, and operations related to peacekeeping.
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