Indian and Chinese forces clashed along their disputed border – the first such incident between the two nuclear powers since the deadly clashes in 2020.
They clashed along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), a disputed border that separates the two Asian countries high in the Himalayan mountain range.
Indian troops prevented Chinese soldiers from entering Indian territory on Friday during a border brawl that left both sides injured, Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said on Tuesday.
But China blamed India for the incursion, accusing Indian troops of crossing the border “illegally” to “block” a routine patrol by Chinese border troops.
“We urge the Indian side to strictly control and restrict frontline troops and work with China to maintain border peace and security,” a People’s Liberation Army (PLA) spokesperson said. from China.
The incident happened in the Tawang sector in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh in the northeast Himalayas, which borders southern China and is also claimed by Beijing.
Troops on patrol from both sides came face to face on one of the peaks and in the ensuing hand-to-hand combat, some soldiers fell to the rocky surface and injured themselves, a source said. Indian defense to the Reuters news agency.
Two other sources said about half a dozen Indian soldiers were lightly injured.
Mr Singh told Indian politicians: “These are skirmishes that keep happening, and they’re not major. It wasn’t major.”
He said the scuffle left “a few personnel injured on both sides”, but there were no “serious casualties on our side”.
“PLA troops attempted to breach the LAC in the Yangtze River area of Tawang sector and unilaterally change the status quo,” he said.
“The Chinese attempt was resisted by our troops in a firm and resolute manner. The ensuing confrontation led to a physical fight in which the Indian army bravely prevented the PLA from entering our territory and forced them to return to their posts.
“The Chinese side was asked to refrain from such actions and maintain peace and quiet along the border.”
The issue has also been taken up with China through diplomatic channels, he added.
Twenty Indian soldiers and four Chinese soldiers died after deadly clashes at the disputed border in June 2020.
These are the first fatalities between the two sides in decades, with both sides accusing the other of incurring sovereign territory.
Until then, the 2,360-mile border between the two nations had remained largely peaceful since a war in 1962.
