On Day Of Joint Statement, China Releases Video Of 2020 Galwan Clashes

Chinese online handles have released footage of the clashes which took place between Indian and Chinese soldiers in the Galwan Valley in Ladakh in June last year. The visuals surfaced hours after India and China issued a joint statement yesterday saying they would continue Commander-level military talks to deescalate tensions in eastern Ladakh.

The clashes between Indian and Chinese troops, the worst since the 1962 war, took place on June 15 last year.

The footage shows Chinese soldiers throwing stones at Indian soldiers from heights above the bend of the Galwan river. The clip also shows a few Chinese soldiers adrift in the shallow, fast-flowing river and soldiers of both sides amassed. India has officially announced that 20 officers and men were killed in the clashes, the worst since the 1962 war. China says it lost four soldiers, a claim that army sources strongly dispute.

India and China held the 12th round of military talks on Saturday to resolve the Ladakh standoff and agreed to resolve pending issues. However, there is no big movement on pushing disengagement at remaining friction points along the border like Hot Springs and Gogra after the nine-hour meeting.

A joint statement released by the Army said the two sides had a "candid and in-depth exchange" of views relating to the disengagement and that the meeting further enhanced mutual understanding.

India asserts that the resolution of the outstanding flashpoints, including at Depsang, Hot Springs and Gogra, is key to the ties between the two countries.

The latest round followed talks between Foreign Minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Dushanbe on July 14 on the sidelines of a conclave of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

Mr Jaishankar had told Wang that any unilateral change in the status quo along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) was "not acceptable" to India and that the overall ties can only develop after full restoration of peace and tranquility in eastern Ladakh.