“Seventy years of a border dispute with China will not be an easy one, but time has come that China should engage more in the agreed principle rather than the military actions,” Mundhe said
The military stand-off between Indian and Chinese troops on the Line of Actual Control escalated and led to a deadly clash last week. 20 Indian Army soldiers, including a colonel, were killed in clashes with Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh on Monday night. This is the biggest military confrontation between the two countries in over five decades.
The last such big scale confrontation between the two troops happened in 1967 in Nathu La when India lost around 80 soldiers while over 300 Chinese army personnel were killed in the confrontation.
Following the current scenario, to understand the gravity of the situation, and the behaviour of the Chinese army towards the Indian army, HW News Network questioned experts to know more about it.
The Indian government has been talking about the disengagement of both the armies from the LAC. The attack raises the question of whether the Chinese army had withdrawn or not?
According to the analyst of International Politics, Assistant Professor of Mumbai University, Rohidas Mundhe, “The Chinese PLA came forward in the grey area from the Actual Line of Control. Where the standoff between the two i.e the physical conflict at Finger Four and Finger Five points at Galwan valley took place. There was a favourable situation when the talks at the Lieutenant General level were going on. Both side troops retreated from the grey area but India wanted that Chinese troops should get back to the position where they were in April 2020. The sudden attack when the process was going on and to such extent, that casualty happened was really surprising. This came as a shock.”
For the first time in 45 years, there was a casualty that too when the military level talks were going on?
“It’s true after the long run both sides did not have any casualties. But an intrusion from both sides happened due to the non-demarcation of the border on the ground. The violence is a setback to the military level talks. This incident will also reflect in the next meeting of the joint working group at the political level. The joint working group is made to talk on the border issue and give a solution which would be mutually accepted and beneficial,” Mundhe said.
Do you think China is playing a victim’s cards considering the constant statements from the Chinese government blaming Indian troops for the aggression?
Mundhe said, “I don’t think China plays any victim’s card because they are always clear and ready with their objective. China’s move in any area or stand on any issue is always a calculated policy. Rather I would say, China was preparing for a standoff since Doklam which took place for almost 72 days. And China was not happy the way they were forced to withdraw from the Doklam region.”
Do you think the Chinese army has been aggressive towards the Indian army?
“Always, the Chinese army has always been aggressive. Rather they are aggressive with all their neighbours. With the aggressive policy, they have settled their border disputes with other countries in their own favour and they want to apply the same policy in India as well. China’s policy is to keep the Indian leadership engaged in talks on one hand and on another hand build military pressure on the border. But the time has changed and this time Indian leadership has allowed the military to act as per the drive which China never expected,” Mundhe said.
The current situation in the Galwan valley, the attack, and the relation between India and China. How seriously do you think the situation is? Will it cool off soon or whether it will lengthen?
Mundhe said, “It is a serious issue and also a violation of the Peace Maintainance Agreement at Border between India and China, 1993. The agreement talks about the peaceful solution to the issue is to keep minimum troops at the Actual Line of Control, mutual consultation, and so on. This is also a violation of the agreement that happened between the two countries in 2013, which said neither of the sides shall assemble its army in the grey area nor construct anything in the area overnight. It appears to be a violation of both the agreement. It is a serious situation and in such a time when the entire world is fighting against COVID -19. Seventy years of a border dispute with China will not be an easy one, but time has come that China should engage more in the agreed principle rather than the military actions.”
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