The Indian Defence Ministry accused China on Tuesday, amid a new standoff, of continuing to escalate tensions in the Eastern Ladakh region, stressed that the Indian Army did not resort to any aggressive actions, and confirmed commitment to protect national sovereignty.
China continues to undertake "provocative activities" to escalate tensions, an Indian army said in a statement.
"India ... is committed to disengagement and de-escalating the situation on the LAC, China continues to undertake provocative activities to escalate. At no stage has the lndian Army transgressed across the LAC or resorted to use of any aggressive means, including firing. It is the PLA [China's People's Liberation Army] that has been blatantly violating agreements and carrying out aggressive manoeuvres, while engagement at military, diplomatic and political level is in progress," the Indian Defence Ministry said.
BREAKING: First Official Statement from India on fresh LAC standoff with Chinese PLA & firing. ‘At no stage has Indian Army transgressed across the LAC or resorted to use of any aggressive means, including firing.’ India accuses China of firing to intimidate Indian troops at LAC. pic.twitter.com/OWsnRHwHAW
— Aditya Raj Kaul (@AdityaRajKaul) September 8, 2020
According to the Indian military, the PLA troops made an attempt to "close-in with one of our forward positions along the LAC" on Monday, but were then dissuaded.
Border conflicts are a permanent fixture of India-China relations, as the countries do not have a marked border but rather the LAC, created after the 1962 war between the nations. Tensions became more strained as a result of skirmishes between the countries' border forces starting in May.
