India, China Troops Clash In Sikkim Sector, Disengage After Dialogue

NEW DELHI: Troops of India and China were involved in a fierce face-off and many of them sustained minor injuries in the clash near Naku La in the Sikkim sector along the Sino-Indo border on Saturday. The incident was captured on camera by the Indian Army, according to a leading news channel.

At least 15-20 soldiers were involved in hand-to-hand fighting at an altitude of more than 16,000 feet. Reports also said that stone-pelting between the forces also took place.

The troops disengaged after dialogue at the local level.

In a statement, the Army said, "Aggressive behaviour by the two sides resulted in minor injuries to troops. The two sides disengaged after dialogue and interaction at local level."

"Temporary and short duration faceoffs between border guarding troops do occur as boundaries are not resolved. Incident of face off as referred to in the article did take place. Troops resolve such issues mutually as per established protocols," the statement read.

It was in 2017 that soldiers from India and China got into a fight on the Eastern Bank of the Pangong Lake in Ladakh. In that year only, Indian and Chinese troops were locked in a 73-day face-off in Doklam region near the India-China-Bhutan trijunction.

India and China share a 3,448-kilometre long boundary which is divided into west, middle and east sections. In the east, China claims India's Arunachal Pradesh as its own while New Delhi lays claims to Aksai Chin occupied by Beijing in the west.

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