Link to Article: Indian Troops Brawl with Chinese Counterparts on Border
Indian and Chinese soldiers were injured in another violent clash along the Himalayan border last week, as tensions between the two nuclear powers showed no signs of abating. According to reports, Indian and Chinese troops came to physical blows on Wednesday along the high-altitude border in north Sikkim, a small Indian state, situated between India and Bhutan, which has been a flashpoint of the India-China conflict for decades. Indian officials claimed that Chinese troops had attempted to cross over into territory claimed by India in the area of Naku La in Sikkim, which led to a skirmish that injured soldiers from both sides. It is understood that no shots were fired.
The incident marks a continued souring of relations between India and China, who have been engaged in an increasingly violent and costly face-off along their 2,100-mile long border since May. China had been accused of building up troop presence, artillery and infrastructure along the contested border for months and moving into territory long claimed by India. About 100,000 Indian and Chinese troops have since been stationed along the border in eastern Ladakh, weathering hostile mountain temperatures of as low as -40 degrees over the winter months. Disengagement talks between Indian and Chinese commanders are now in their ninth round but a process of de-escalation along the border has yet to be agreed.
Last week, an Indian news channel published satellite images, which showed how China had recently built a village of more than 100 homes in a border area of the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, which is officially claimed as Indian territory, another sign of the increased Chinese activity along the border that has enraged Indian officials and locals. China described the village as “construction on our own territory”.