Chinese government planned Galwan incident: US panel

December 02, 2020 12:10

The Chinese government had "planned" the June Galwan incident even as Beijing ramped up its multiyear coercion campaign against its neighbors, provoking military or paramilitary standoffs with countries from Japan to India, the United States top panel said in its report released on Wednesday.

Months after the Galwan clashes that resulted in the brutal death of 20 Indian soldiers, United States-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC) in its report '2020 Report To Congress of the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission" said, "Some evidence suggested the Chinese government had planned the incident (Galwan), potentially including the possibility for fatalities.

"The report read, "In June 2020, the PLA and Indian troops engaged in a massive physical brawl in the Galwan Valley, located in the far-western Ladakh region along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) separating the two countries. The clash, which followed a series of standoffs beginning in early May along multiple sectors of the LAC, led to at least 20 Indian deaths and an unconfirmed number of Chinese casualties, the first time since 1975 that lives were lost in fighting between the two sides."

Beijing ramped up its multiyear coercion campaign against its neighbors, provoking military or paramilitary standoffs with countries from Japan to India and much of Southeast Asia.

Shortly after China's defense minister urged Beijing to use military force to stabilize its periphery, a violent clash on the China-India border in June led to the first loss of life between the two countries since 1975," it said.

Quoting Tanvi Madan, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, the report said, "According to Dr Madan, if China's goal from its actions was "to acquire territory... [the Chinese government] might deem the moves a success". If Beijing intended to dissuade India from building infrastructure on its side of the LAC or warn it against aligning with the United States, however, "then the Chinese moves have been ineffective, if not counterproductive."

"Some evidence suggested the Chinese government had planned the incident, potentially including the possibility for fatalities. For instance, several weeks prior to the clash Defense Minister Wei made his statement encouraging Beijing to "use fighting to promote stability," the report said. -- PTI

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