New Delhi: China has accused India of illegally crossing the LAC to encroach on China’s territory, saying it is the root cause of tension in the China-India border situation. In response to a media query regarding the Indian army deploying more sophisticated artillery to the Line of Actual Control with China in the Eastern Ladakh, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying said, “The Indian side has long pursued the "forward policy" and illegally crossed the LAC to encroach on China's territory, which is the root cause of tension in the China-India border situation”.
“China opposes any arms race in the disputed border areas for competition over control. We have always been firm in safeguarding national territorial sovereignty and security, and committed to peace and stability in the China-India border areas”, she added.
In response to Chinese build-up and amid no signs of de-escalation in eastern Ladakh, the Indian army is leaving no stone unturned to strengthen its combat posture by deploying artillery guns along the LAC with Bofors and rocket systems, new M-777 ultra-light howitzers.
According to reports, the M-77 howitzers can be airlifted from one sector to another in forwarding areas by Chinook helicopters, while the swifter mobilization of artillery guns has been made possible by the roads constructed by the Border Roads Organisation in the last couple of years.
Earlier, ahead of the Gunners day held on September 28, Director General (Artillery) Lt General TK Chawla had said that the Army is also trial evaluating whether the new K-9 Vajra self-propelled tracked guns, procured for operations in plains and desserts, can be effectively deployed in high-altitude regions as well.
Indian and Chinese soldiers have been engaged in a violent border standoff along the LAC in Ladakh for over 16 months. Both sides have deployed tens of thousands of soldiers, backed by artillery guns, tanks and fighter jets. Ever since then, several rounds of military and diplomatic talks between India and China have taken place to ease the border stand-off.
Various rounds of the meeting of working mechanism for consultation and coordination on India-China border Affairs has been conducted, during which India and China agreed to maintain dialogue and communication and ensure stability on the ground and prevent any untoward incident.
Meanwhile, on Sunday, India’s ambassador to Beijing Vikram Misri listed ‘avoid shifting goalposts', ‘take a one-sided view of concern and sensitivities’, ‘viewing bilateral relations through the prism of relations with other countries, as some of the obstacles in India-China ties.
After the standoff in Eastern Ladakh in May last year, India has consistently maintained its stance that peace and tranquillity in the border areas are essential for the overall development of relations between the two countries.
However, India refuted the allegations of China. "We had already made our position clear a few days back that we reject such statements which have no basis in facts. It was the amassing of a large number of troops by the Chinese side, their provocative behavior and unilateral attempts to alter status quo in contravention of all our bilateral agreements that resulted in serious disturbance of peace and tranquility along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh.
China continues to deploy large number of troops and armaments in the border areas. It was in response to Chinese actions, that our armed forces had to make appropriate counter deployments in these areas to ensure that India’s security interests are fully protected. As emphasized by EAM in his meeting with Chinese FM earlier this month, it is our expectation that the Chinese side will work towards early resolution of the remaining issues along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh while fully abiding by bilateral agreements and protocols," MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.
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