An Indian Army truck drives along a road to Tawang, near the Line of Actual Control neighboring China in India’s Arunachal Pradesh state on Oct. 21, 2021.
Money Sharma | AFP | Getty Images
Indian and Chinese forces injured each other in disputed territory over recent days, the Indian defense ministry said, in the most serious border skirmish between the two nations since deadly hostilities in 2020.
New Delhi’s defense ministry said that injuries were sustained by “a few personnel on both sides,” after Indian troops on Dec. 9 prevented their Chinese counterparts from entering the Tawang sector of Arunachal Pradesh, a northeastern Indian territory that China claims as part of Southern Tibet.
“The Chinese side was asked to refrain from such actions and maintain peace and tranquility along the border,” India’s defense ministry said. “The issue has also been taken up with the Chinese side through diplomatic channels.”
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin characterized the situation at the India-China border as “generally stable,” according to Reuters.
The incident marks the most serious escalation at the frontier between the Asian countries since the clashes of June 2020, which saw 20 Indian soldiers killed and undisclosed numbers of Chinese casualties.
On Sept. 9, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said New Delhi and Beijing had agreed that both parties would disengage from the Gogra-Hot Springs area of the contested Ladakh region administered by India.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping recently met and shook hands at the G-20 summit in Bali, video footage shows.
