China blames India for Galwan Valley clash

China has blamed India for the Galwan Valley clash in June last year in which 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers were killed, saying New Delhi had violated all border-related agreements and encroached on Chinese territory.

China on Friday blamed India for the Galwan Valley clash in June last year in which 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers were killed, saying New Delhi had violated all border-related agreements and encroached on Chinese territory.

In this file photo, a banner erected by the Indian army stands near Pangong lake near the India-China border in India's Ladakh area. China on Friday blamed India for the Galwan Valley clash in June last year in which 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers were killed, saying New Delhi had violated all border-related agreements and encroached on Chinese territory. (AP)

India and China have been locked in a border row for 16 months, a row that witnessed the deadly skirmish in the Galwan Valley on June 15, 2020, when troops from both sides fought for hours with iron rods and clubs covered with barbed wires.

Twenty Indian soldiers were killed in the Galwan Valley clash, the first fatalities on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) since 1975.

Several rounds of diplomatic and military talks have failed to fully resolve the tension, the worst in decades.

India has repeatedly and consistently rejected China’s allegations that Indian troops crossed over to the Chinese side of the LAC in eastern Ladakh, asserting that New Delhi has always taken a responsible approach towards border management and maintaining peace and tranquility in the border areas.

China, however, has continued to blame India.

Responding to a question on the reorganisation of the Indian military into theatre commands and its impact on the management of the Sino-India border, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said: “All the agreements and treaties between China and India on upholding the peace and stability in the area of the LAC have played an important role in upholding stability in the border areas.”

“In the last year, Galwan Valley incident took place because India violated all the signed agreements and treaties and encroached upon Chinese territory, illegally crossed the line (LAC). We hope India will abide by all the signed agreements and uphold peace stability in the border region with concrete actions,” Zhao Lijian said.

In September, 2020, China had said that it abides by the LAC, the notional Sino-India boundary, as proposed by Premier Zhou Enlai to Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in a letter dated November 7, 1959 - an offer New Delhi has consistently rejected since it was first made 61 years ago.