India-China standoff in Ladakh: Situation sensitive but not dangerous, say sources

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New Delhi: In the midst of escalating border tension between Indian and Chinese troops in eastern Ladakh at the Line of Actual Control, Indian government sources on Tuesday (May 26) said the standoff between armies of two nations is sensitive but not dangerous. 

The development comes even as a number of the high-level meeting took place in Delhi on the Chinese build up on its side of the LAC. 

WION has also learnt that both sides are in communication at the diplomatic, local level to resolve the current situation. 

While both Delhi and Bejing are tight-lipped, it is only after Global Times, the Chinese govt mouthpiece first officially confirmed that "Chinese border defence troops have enhanced control measures in the Galwan Valley region". Galwan valley is in Chinese occupied union territory of Ladakh.

The Global Times report claimed that the latest fracas at Ladakh was due to a planned move of New Delhi to seize Chinese territory by building a structure, New Delhi said that Beijing hindered Indian patrols in the area in the recent past.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in a statement said, "All Indian activities are entirely on the Indian side of the LAC. In fact, it is the Chinese side that has recently undertaken activity hindering India's normal patrolling patterns. The Indian side has always taken a very responsible approach towards border management."

Explaining that Indian troops are fully familiar with the alignment of the Line of Actual Control in the India-China border areas and abide by it scrupulously, the MEA said, "We are deeply committed to ensuring India's sovereignty and security."

While Ladakh face-off caught the attention, the recent face-off in Naku La, Sikkim and other places across the LAC has been a worrisome development. After the 2-month long Doklam crisis in 2017, both established a mechanism of informal summits alternating between the two countries to resolve any problems that may arise. 

In the first informal summit in Wuhan in 2018, both sides gave guidance to forces and committed to working for the common objective of maintenance of peace and tranquillity in border areas. This was reiterated again in the Mamallapuram informal summit that took last year.