Revision as of 09:35, 6 October 2020

Attacks by China

Early 1900s

Rohan Dua, June 19, 2020: The Times of India

The attack is mentioned in Ghulam Rasul Galwan’s ‘Servant of Sahibs- Asakal of Leh’
From: Rohan Dua, June 19, 2020: The Times of India

Days after the India-China face-off in Galwan river valley, the family of Ladhakhi writer and explorer Ghulam Rasul Galwan — from whom the valley gets its name — recalled another brutal encounter on the same land, this one a century ago, that their ancestor had with Chinese soldiers during an expedition in the 1900s.

“It pains us that more than 100 years on, Chinese transgressions have continued. Galwan Valley is named after my great-grandfather who bravely fought the Chinese and lived to tell the tale,” Manzoor, the author’s great-grandson, told TOI from his home in Leh’s Yourtung on Thursday. Galwan’s grandson, Amin, a 65-year-old retired government servant, recalled the Chinese attack mentioned in his grandfather’s autobiography ‘Servant of Sahibs: Asakal of Leh’. He said: “My grandfather had taken along sahibs (as British were called then) for an expedition near the valley in the early 1900s when there were several instances of Chinese soldiers beating them up. One day, there was news of another attack and armed with sticks my grandfather and a few others ran after four Chinese soldiers on horses. When they were on their way back to camp, some Chinese men attacked them brutally. They managed to flee and hide in a house for some time but when they came out, the Chinese encircled them. It was only when my grandfather feigned death that they left.” Galwan lay there until some British men came to his rescue several hours later. It’s his tales of exploration and courage that are often cited in the region. Galwan’s journey from a porter to an ‘aksakal’ or assistant to the then British joint commissioner at Leh is recorded in gazetteers.

Amin said his grandfather was born in 1878 in Leh and worked as a guide for the British in Tibet, the mountains of central Asia — especially the Karakoram Range — when he was barely 12. It was a time when the British were anxious about Russian expansion with an eye on Tibet. Galwan guided troops through the hostile territory and gathered intelligence about Russian plans that could compromise British interests in India. Tahir, another one of his greatgrandsons, said “It’s time that we give a strong push to Indian brands. The Galwan valley will always remain ours.”

2020

Beginning of the clash

China ordered attack on Indian troops in Galwan River Valley: US Intel, June 23, 2020: The Times of India

WASHINGTON: A senior Chinese general authorised his forces to attack Indian troops in the Galwan River valley, resulting in a brutal skirmish that killed dozens and dramatically escalated tensions between the two Asian powerhouses, according to a U.S. intelligence assessment.

Gen. Zhao Zongqi, head of the Western Theater Command and among the few combat veterans still serving in the People's Liberation Army, approved the operation along the contested border region of northern India and southwestern China, a source familiar with the assessment says on the condition of anonymity. According to U.S. News, Zhao, who has overseen prior standoffs with India, has previously expressed concerns that China must not appear weak to avoid exploitation by the United States and its allies, including in New Delhi, the source says, and saw the faceoff last week as a way to "teach India a lesson."

The assessment contradicts China's subsequent assertions about what happened on June 15.

And it indicates the deadly and contentious incident - in which at least 20 Indian and 35 Chinese troops died, and reportedly a handful on each side were captured and subsequently released - was not the result of a tense circumstance that spiralled out of control, as has happened before, but rather a purposeful decision by Beijing to send a message of strength to India.

Yet that plan appears to have backfired, as the incident sparked widespread outrage in India that continues a week later. And Beijing's attempts to make India more amenable to future negotiations, including about contested territory, instead appear to have pushed the economic giant closer to the U.S.

Much is at stake, far beyond territorial control. The U.S. has pressured India for months to back away from employing Chinese tech company Huawei to help build its 5G infrastructure. In the aftermath of June 15 incident Indians were reportedly deleting Chinese social media app TikTok and destroying phones made in China.

"It does the very opposite of what China wanted," the source says, adding that "this is not a victory for China's military."

It remains unclear the extent to which Chinese President Xi Jinping was involved in the decisions that led to the bloody encounter, though analysts familiar with Chinese military decision making say he would have almost certainly known about the orders.

Troops had massed on both sides of the border in recent months in the northern India region of Ladakh and the southwestern Chinese region of Aksai Chin, causing global concerns of a potential escalation between the two.

Private geo-intelligence firm Hawkeye 360 recently reported that satellite imagery from late May showed a buildup on the Chinese side of what appeared to be armed personnel carriers and self-propelled artillery.

Damage to China

Death of Chinese officers

China confirms death of 2 officers, including CO, June 23, 2020: The Times of India

China has confirmed that the commanding officer and another officer of the PLA battalion that instigated a bloody confrontation with Indian troops on the night of June 15 in Galwan Valley were killed in the clashes.

The Chinese side had informed the Indians soon afterwards about the deaths of their officers, but this has come to light only now. TOI had in its edition of June 18 reported the deaths in the PLA ranks (see screenshot) on the basis of intelligence sources.

A confirmation by China is significant. This is perhaps the first time since the clash with Vietnam in 1979—a military disaster for China—that PLA has suffered battle fatalities. The Chinese foreign ministry has refrained from acknowledging the losses suffered by PLA. Chinese media reports on the first day acknowledged PLA had lost an unspecified number of men.