Indian Spy Satellite Reportedly Keeping an Eye on Chinese Troops in Tibet Amid Border Area Tensions

In mid-June, clashes broke out between China and India after they accused each other of violating the 4,057-km Line of Actual Control, adjacent to the Ladakh region, the border that both sides agreed to in 1993.

India TV has cited an unnamed source as saying that the country’s spy satellite "has taken a good look" at the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA)’s positions in Tibet.

The EMISAT satellite is equipped with an ELINT (electronic intelligence) package, the source said, adding that its capabilities "are among the most highly-classified and closely-guarded aspects of operation for military purposes".

ELINT missions are tasked with monitoring radio signals to help the Indian military determine the nature of "all the sources of transmissions in an enemy area", according to the source.

The latest mission comes amid unsuccessful attempts by India and China to reach a consensus on the Line of Actual Control (LAC)-related bilateral standoff, which has been in place since mid-June.

Media reports said that New Delhi and Beijing had held several rounds of talks between army commanders and diplomats over the past few days, but that Beijing has not yet withdrawn its troops from either Pangong Tso or the Depsang Valley in the area adjacent to the Line of Actual Control.

India earlier reportedly deployed its short-range missile defence system in the Ladakh region after it tracked more PLA combat helicopters and fighter jets near the loosely demarcated Line of Actual Control.

On 15 June, Chinese and Indian troops engaged in violent clashes as both sides accused each other of violating the 1993 agreement on the 4,057-km LAC. The clashes claimed the lives of at least 20 Indian soldiers, while Beijing did not confirm any casualties in what became the first deadly clash in the two's border area in at least 45 years.