China demands India launch probe into border incident
China demands that India carry out a thorough investigation into the border incident, severely punish those who should be held accountable, strictly discipline Indian frontline troops, and immediately stop all provocative actions so as to ensure that such incidents do not happen again, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi told the Indian foreign minister during a phone call on Wednesday regarding the Monday border confrontation that caused casualties on both sides in the Galwan Valley.
Under the circumstance that the current situation in the Galwan Valley has eased, the Indian troops once again crossed the Line of Actual Control (LAC) for deliberate provocation, and even violently attacked the Chinese officers and soldiers
who went to the terrain for negotiation, Wang told Indian Minister of External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s website.
“The hazardous move of the Indian army severely violated the agreement reached between the two countries on the border issue and the basic norms of international relations,” Wang said. India must ensure that such incidents do not happen again. India must not misjudge the current situation, or underestimate China’s firm will to safeguard its territorial sovereignty.
The Indian foreign minister said India would like to ease the border tension through peaceful dialogue with China.
Wang stressed that China and India, both emerging powers with a population of over 1 billion, bear the historic mission of accelerating their own development and rejuvenation. Hence, acts of mutual respect and mutual support are on the right track and conform to the long-term interests of both countries.
Chinese analysts noted that from the phone call between the top diplomats of the two countries, China showed its sincerity to ease tension and also sent tough signals and showed its firm stance on safeguarding its principle and bottom line. This means that whether India chooses to ease or escalate tensions, China is fully prepared.
Unlikely to escalate
The China-India border confrontation that caused the deaths of 20 Indian military personnel will not escalate as the two sides share a consensus to solve the issue through communication, and if India cannot control its military forces in the border region, it would pay a heavy price as its economy has been damaged by COVID-19 and its underdeveloped military power makes it incapable of escalating tension with China, Chinese analysts said.
“The incident was very clear as it took place on the Chinese side of the LAC, and the responsibility does not lie with China,” Zhao Lijian, spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, made the remarks at Wednesday’s media briefing in response to questions raised on whether diplomats or military officers of the two sides were involved in resolving the issue.
Hu Zhiyong, a research fellow at the Institute of International Relations of the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Wednesday that China has no intention to change the border situation at all, and the incident happened on the Chinese side of the LAC, so the confrontation causing the deaths of 20 Indian military personnel was entirely provoked by the Indian side.
Limited power
According to the number of casualties released by India, observers noted that this is the most severe border confrontation that China and India have experienced in decades, and the best choice for India is to cease provocations and settle down tensions with China through dialogue as soon as possible, and not miscalculate the situation just like what it did in 1962.
A military expert at a Beijing-based military academy who requested anonymity told the Global Times that the reason behind China not releasing the number of casualties is that China does not want people in the two countries to get further impacted, as any comparison of casualties could incite nationalist sentiment on both sides, and such an event is totally unhelpful for the two to ease tensions.
“In other words, if Indian nationalists see the number of fatalities and find out that the Indian military lost more soldiers than China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) did, then the Modi administration and the Indian military would be under huge pressure to escalate and continue their provocations. So remaining silent regarding this matter is very wise,” he remarked.
A PLA veteran who has experience conducting missions in plateau regions told the Global Times anonymously on Wednesday that freezing temperatures and altitude stress are indeed challenges for highaltitude operations, but 17 Indian soldiers having died after a violent encounter with no shots fired indicates their physical conditions were not fit for deployment to such a harsh environment.
It also showed the lackluster medical and logistics capabilities India has on the frontline. If treated quickly and properly, they would not have died, the veteran said.
They might not have access to a qualified field hospital, and not have rapid transportation means, oxygen bags, or even warm clothes, the veteran said.
These details show that Indian troops’ combat capabilities are limited, the veteran concluded.