China and India have said they have agreed to push for an early disengagement of front-line troops, after soldiers clashed along their disputed Himalayan border in the first outbreak of violence in the area. seven months.
The two countries said at a commander-level meeting on Sunday that they would hold dialogue and negotiations, according to a joint press release issued by the Chinese defense ministry on Monday night. China and India agreed to hold the next meeting at an early date to advance the de-escalation, the statement said.
The statement did not mention the latest clash between troops.
Soldiers from both sides were injured in the new outbreak of violence along the border across the northeastern state of Sikkim. ANI reported. The Indian army confirmed in a statement that there was a “minor confrontation” in the Nakula area, north of Sikkim, on January 20, which was resolved by local commanders.
It is the same area where violence broke out between the two armies on 9 May.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told a daily briefing in Beijing on Monday that he had “no information to offer” on reports of the clashes.
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“I would like to stress, however, that China’s border troops are committed to maintaining peace and tranquility on the border with India,” Zhao said. “We urge the Indian side to work in the same direction with us and to refrain from actions that could increase or complicate the situation along the border.”
Hu Xijin, the editor-in-chief of the Global Times, backed by the Communist Party, called the reports “fake news” in a tweet, saying there was no record of the Chinese side’s patrol record. Hu’s tweets are closely monitored after accurately predicting Beijing’s previous moves, though his statements sometimes do not reflect official policy.
Both sides moved thousands of soldiers, tanks, artillery to the disputed border after clashes in the Galwan Valley in Ladakh last June that left at least 20 Indian soldiers and an unknown number of Chinese troops dead.
India and China share a disputed, unmarked border of 3,488 kilometers (2,167 miles), known as the Royal Line of Control. The two nations held another round of corps-level talks on Sunday aimed at ending the confrontation.
– With the assistance of Sudhi Ranjan Sen, Lulu Shen, Lucille Liu, Colum Murphy and Jon Herskovitz