Nepal's Ruling Party Seeks PM Oli's Resignation Over Remarks On India

KATHMANDU, June 30: Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli's recent remarks that efforts are being made to oust him after his government redrew Nepal's political map has backfired, with top leaders of the ruling Nepal Communist Party demanding his resignation on Tuesday.

As soon as the powerful Standing Committee meeting of the ruling party started at the PM's official residence at Baluwatar on Tuesday, former prime minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal "Prachanda" slammed KP Oli for the remarks he made on Sunday.

"The Prime Minister's remarks that India was conspiring to remove him was neither politically correct, nor diplomatically appropriate," he said.

"Such a statement by the Prime Minister may damage our relations with the neighbour," he warned.

Prime Minister KP Oli on Sunday said that there have been various kinds of activities in the "embassies and hotels" to remove him from power. He said some Nepalese leaders were also involved in the game.

It was not appropriate for the prime minister to accuse the southern neighbour and leaders of his own party, a senior leader of the party quoted Prachanda as saying during the meeting.

Besides top leader Prachanda, senior leaders Madhav Kumar Nepal, Jhalanath Khanal, Vice Chairman Bamdev Gautam and spokesperson Narayankaji Shrestha also asked Prime Minister Oli to provide evidence of his accusations and asked him to quit, he said.

They said the prime minister should resign on moral grounds after making such "undiplomatic and nonpolitical remarks." However, KP Oli, who was also present at the meeting, did not make any comments.

Prachanda has time and again spoken about the lack of coordination between the government and the party and emphasised on a 'one man one position' system to be followed by the Nepal Communist Party.

This is not the first time that the senior leaders asked Prime Minister KP Oli to resign from his post. In April too, KP Oli was asked to resign from his post.

China passes Hong Kong national security law

HONG KONG, June 30: Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday signed into law the Hong Kong national security bill in a closed-door meeting of the of the Communist Party of China (CPC) elite in Beijing, formalising a legislation that critics fear could crush the city’s freedoms.

Hong Kong’s pro-democracy activists could potentially face life sentences if they are found to have broken the new law.

The legislation was unanimously approved little more than six weeks after it was first unveiled. Xinhua reported that Chinese lawmakers voted to adopt the law and decided that it will be included in Hong Kong’s mini-constitution known as “Basic Law”.

Beijing says the law will be enforced to tackle separatism and foreign interference, but critics feel it will outlaw dissent and curb the various freedoms enjoyed by Hong Kong’s citizens under the “one country, two systems” mechanism under which it has been governed since 1997. The law will come into effect on Wednesday, which marks the anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover to China by Britain.

Prominent Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong announced he’s stepping down as leader of his anti-Beijing group Demosisto, soon after China passed the controversial law.

“After much internal deliberation, we have decided to disband and cease all operations as a group, given the circumstances,” Demosisto said on Twitter.

Chinese foreign ministry said it will take necessary countermeasures to “firmly safeguard” its national interests in response to a decision by the US to end special treatment for Hong Kong over the new law.

Hong Kong’s pro-Beijing leader Carrie Lam said the law will only target a “small minority of illegal, criminal acts and activities”.

UK PM Boris Johnson the text of the new law will now be scrutinised. “I am deeply concerned at the law being passed. We will be looking at it carefully and scrutinise it if it is in conflict with the declaration with China. We have a duty to BNOs (British National Overseas) in Hong Kong as I said earlier.”

Nepal PM fears of move to topple him

June 28: Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli on Sunday accused India of being behind a conspiracy to topple him for publishing the country’s new map that depicts Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura as part of Nepalese territory.

Oli made the remarks while addressing a meeting held in Kathmandu to mark the birth anniversary of late communist leader Madan Bhandari. The comments come at a time when Oli is facing intense criticism from within the ruling Nepal Communist Party for his governance and handling of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“A conspiracy is being hatched to remove me for releasing the country’s new map and getting it adopted through Parliament. In light of these discussions, the media reports from New Delhi, [the Indian] embassy’s activities and meetings in different hotels in Kathmandu, it’s not difficult to understand how people are openly active to topple me,” Oli said, speaking in Nepali.

He added, “There is a race to remove me. It has been said people who commit such crimes should not be allowed to stay. Printing a map is called a crime.”

There was no immediate reaction to Oli’s remarks from Indian officials. The Indian side has described Nepal’s new map as an “artificial enlargement of territorial claims” and said the onus is on the Nepalese side to create a positive atmosphere for talks to resolve the border row.

On June 18, Nepal’s President Bidya Devi Bhandari signed the bill to give legal backing to the new map after it was approved by both houses of Parliament.

During an ongoing meeting of the standing committee of the Nepal Communist Party, Oli has faced withering criticism from the faction led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda”. A majority of members of the committee are with Prachanda and Oli skipped the committee’s session on Friday. Oli has also said several times that his stance on a nationalistic issue such as the new map will lead to efforts to oust him.

“Nepal’s nationalism is not so weak that someone can dream of removing the country’s prime minister for publishing the new map and making it part of the Constitution...It is unthinkable,” Oli said on Sunday.

Nepal hadn’t made a mistake as it has only asked for its own land back, and it has not claimed or tried to grab anyone else’s land, he said.

Oli also contended he had been removed as the premier in 2016 for signing a transport and transit agreement with China. “Now, they’re having the same dream because the constitutional amendment has been passed and the map has been issued. They are upset on the inside for this crime being committed,” he said.

He added that he didn’t covet the post but it was essential for him to remain. If he stepped down at this juncture, it would set a wrong precedent and any other premier who spoke in favour of Nepal would also be forced to quit, he said.

The new map became a popular issue among the public and gained widespread backing from all political parties. However, experts said Oli himself doesn’t enjoy the same sort of popularity within his own party.

China must move back to its side of LAC to normalise ties: Indian envoy Vikram Misri

BEIJING, June 26: The standoff between Indian and Chinese border troops can be resolved only if the Chinese side stops building new structures along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), India’s ambassador to China Vikram Misri said on Friday.

Reiterating India’s position that the standoff and a violent face-off on June 15 were triggered by China’s actions, Vikram Misri said in Beijing that the Chinese side has to stop the practice of transgressing. His remarks made it clear that the Indian side expects China to take steps that will lead to de-escalation and disengagement on the LAC and help restore peace and tranquillity along the disputed border.

The comments also appeared to be a riposte to remarks by China’s envoy to India, Sun Weidong, who had said in an interview on Thursday that the onus wasn’t on his country to resolve the border standoff. Sun said he hoped the Indian side would meet the Chinese side halfway and avoid any actions that could complicate the situation.

Misri said the only way to resolve the standoff along the LAC is for China to stop erecting new structures. He further said China’s recent claim of sovereignty over Galwan Valley was completely “untenable” and such exaggerated claims are not going to help in the prevailing circumstances.

India hopes China will realise its responsibility in de-escalation and disengaging by “moving back to its side of LAC”, he said. China should also stop creating obstructions and hindrances in normal patrolling by Indian troops, he added.

India has always carried out activities on the Indian side of the LAC, he said, reiterating the line taken by the external affairs ministry in recent weeks.

The actions by Chinese forces on the ground have damaged “considerable trust in the bilateral relationship”, Misri said, adding that maintaining peace and tranquillity on the border is a “sine qua non for progress in the rest of the bilateral relationship”.

China’s attempt to alter the status quo on the ground can have “ripples and repercussions” for the broader bilateral relationship, Misri said.

In a strongly worded statement on Thursday, the external affairs ministry had squarely blamed China for the standoff along the LAC, saying Beijing had massed troops along the disputed frontier since May, violated a recent understanding to disengage in Galwan Valley and disregarded all mutually agreed norms for border patrols.

Accusing China of triggering several face-offs by trying to unilaterally change the status quo along the LAC, the Indian side rejected the Chinese side’s “unjustified and untenable” claim on Galwan Valley. The statement also acknowledged both sides “remain deployed in large numbers in the region”.

China amassing troops along LAC since May violating all norms: India

NEW DELHI, June 25: India on Thursday held China responsible for the violent faceoff at the Galwan Valley in Ladakh and accused it of amassing troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in violation of all agreed norms.

The Indian position on the months-old standoff was outlined in a lengthy and sharply worded statement from the external affairs ministry as tensions simmered due to the continuing Chinese military build-up in several sections of the LAC, especially in Ladakh, which has been the focus of the stand-off.

Explaining the context of the standoff and the issues the two sides are trying to address, ministry of external affairs spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said in a statement: “At the heart of the matter is that since early May, the Chinese side has been amassing a large contingent of troops and armaments along the LAC. This is not in accordance with the provisions of our various bilateral agreements, especially the key 1993 Agreement on the Maintenance of Peace and Tranquillity along the Line of Actual Control in the India-China Border Areas.”

This agreement states each side will keep its military forces in areas along the LAC to a “minimum level compatible with friendly and good neighbourly relations”. Following the Chinese build-up, India had to make “counter deployments and the resulting tension has thereafter expressed itself”.

New Delhi reiterated that it has been patrolling in Galwan Valley for a long time, and has never attempted to change the status quo. However, it added the same has not been reciprocated by the Chinese side.

Both sides had developed patterns of patrolling over many years and it is the “reasonable expectation that patrols will not be obstructed in the discharge of their legitimate duties”. However, the Indian side has experienced obstruction to patrolling that is often accompanied by efforts to unilaterally change the status quo along the LAC.

Indian troops are fully familiar with the LAC’s alignment in all sectors and abide scrupulously by it. They have also patrolled all along the LAC, including in Galwan Valley, “for a long time”, the statement said.

Yesterday, China, for the first time, admitted casualties on its side in the violent brawl with Indian soldiers, but claimed that “numbers were not very high”. On the other hand, 20 Indian soldiers died defending their country on June 15.

On Tuesday, Zhao Lijian, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, had dismissed as “fake news” a statement by minister VK Singh that the PLA could have suffered double the number of casualties compared to the Indian army.

China on Wednesday launched a twin diplomatic attack against India with its foreign and defence ministries blaming New Delhi for the Galwan Valley clash and alleging that the external affairs ministry and Indian media were spreading false information about the incident.

On June 20, India, for the second time, rejected China’s claim on Galwan Valley in Ladakh and reiterated that the violent clash of June 15 was triggered by Chinese efforts to build structures on the Indian side of the LAC.

The MEA spoksperson had said the position with regard to Galwan Valley was “historically clear”. He added, “Attempts by the Chinese side to now advance exaggerated and untenable claims with regard to Line of Actual Control (LAC) there are not acceptable. They are not in accordance with China’s own position in the past.”

Imran Khan calls Osama Bin Laden a martyr

ISLAMABAD, June 25: Just a day after the United States called out Pakistan as one of the “safe havens”, Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday called al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden a ‘shaheed’ or martyr. Khan was speaking in the national assembly, elaborating how Pakistan has been humiliated across the world despite having sacrificed lives in the war against terrorism.

“The way we helped America in the ‘war on terror’ and the humiliation that my country had to face. I don’t think there has ever been any other country that supported war on terror and had to face criticism from them. If they are not successful in Afghanistan, Pakistan is held responsible for that too. Openly,” Khan told the National Assembly in a widely-circulated video.

Imran Khan, who had described his foreign policy as his government’s biggest achievement, then went on to relate two instances when he said, people of Pakistan were deeply embarrassed.

“One was when Americans killed Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad. Shaheed kar diya (was martyred). But what happened after that. The entire world hurled abuses at us. Our ally (US) entered our country and killed someone without even telling us. It was a big humiliation,” Khan said, before going on to describe the drone attacks on Pakistan as the second set of incidents that embarrassed the country.

Osama bin Laden was killed in a military operation by US Navy Seals at the Garrison town in Abbottabad.

Imran Khan’s description of Osama bin Laden as a ‘shaheed' set social media abuzz as soon as a video of his remarks got out.

Imran Khan was immediately panned by the opposition leaders from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Pakistan Peoples Party.

“Remember that Osama Bin Laden can be the PM’s hero but not the nation’s. He was and will remain a criminal of the state and the people,” PPP’s Senator Sherry Rehman said, adding that Imran Khan’s words will go down in history.

PML-N senior leader Khawaja Asif also panned Imran Khan. According to a report in Dawn, Asif said Osama bin Laden “brought terrorism to our lands, he was a terrorist through and through and he [PM Khan] calls him shaheed?”

There has been no clarification from Imran Khan, who has been seen to defend Osama bin Laden in the past. Like when he was reported to have argued that one person’s freedom fighter could be another’s terrorist.

Indian diplomat Vidisha Maitra had pointed to such statements from Khan in the United Nations General Assembly when she took the prime minister to the cleaners. Putting the spotlight on Pakistan’s track record of supporting and creating terrorists, she asked PM Khan if he would deny that “he was an open defender of Osama bin Laden”.

Khan has made repeated controversial statements over the years, including during a trip to the US in 2019 when he claimed the ISI provided Washington with a lead that helped them find and kill bin Laden, according to a news agency. The cricketer-turned premier has long been criticised by opponents for overly sympathising with militants, with rivals once dubbing him “Taliban Khan”.

Imran Khan’s remarks on Thursday came just a day after the United States State Department called out Pakistan for its continuing support to terrorists targeting India and Afghanistan.

In its report that classified Pakistan as a safe haven for terrorists, the state department underlined that Jaish-e-Mohammad founder Masood Azhar and 2008 Mumbai terror attacks mastermind Sajid Mir were “widely believed” to be living “under the protection of the state” in Pakistan. The report had mirrored concerns expressed by New Delhi on numerous occasions about Pakistan’s complicity in sponsoring, promoting or supporting terrorists operating from its territory.

Pak in FATF’s ‘Grey List’ after failing to check flow of money to Jaish, Lashkar

PARIS, June 24: The global terror financing watchdog, FATF, on Wednesday decided to keep Pakistan in the “Grey List” as it has failed to check flow of money to terror groups like the LeT and the JeM, officials said.

The decision was taken at the Financial Action Task Force’s third and final plenary held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The plenary was held under the Chinese Presidency of Xiangmin Liu.

“The FATF plenary decided continuation of Pakistan in ‘Grey List’ till its next meeting to be held in October,” an official privy to the development said.

The decision has been taken as Pakistan has failed to check flow of money to terror groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), the official said.

India asks Pak to reduce mission strength to half

NEW DELHI, June 23: India on Tuesday asked Pakistan to reduce its staff strength in the country by half, a decision that comes weeks after the police expelled two staffers at the high commission in Delhi on charges of spying. In the tit-for-tat action that followed, Pakistani security agencies picked two Indian high commission staffers in Islamabad, tortured them and framed them in a false case of a road accident and possession of fake currency.

The proposal had been moved as soon as horrifying details of the torture of two Indian staffers was conveyed to the external affairs ministry on June 16.

Government officials said that the high commissions in Delhi and Islamabad had an agreed strength of 110 officials. This strength has been halved to 55. Both the countries currently have about 90-plus officials.

The external affairs ministry on Tuesday summoned Pakistan’s Charge d’ Affaires Syed Haider Shah and told them about India’s continuing concern about the activities of officials of his mission who have been engaged in acts of espionage and dealing with terrorist organisations.

Back in Islamabad, Syed Haider Shah was told, Pakistan has engaged in a sustained campaign to intimidate the officials of the Indian High Commission in Islamabad from carrying on their legitimate diplomatic functions.

The two officials who had returned on Monday, the external affairs ministry said, had “provided graphic details of the barbaric treatment that they experienced at the hands of Pakistani agencies”.

“The behaviour of Pakistan and its officials is not in conformity with the Vienna Convention and bilateral agreements on the treatment of diplomatic and consular officials. On the contrary, it is an intrinsic element of a larger policy of supporting cross-border violence and terrorism,” the external affairs ministry said.

“Therefore, the Government of India has taken the decision to reduce the staff strength in the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi by 50%. It would reciprocally reduce its own presence in Islamabad to the same proportion. This decision, which is to be implemented in seven days, was conveyed to the Pakistani Charge d’Affaires,” the external affairs ministry said in a statement.

In the discussions on the plan to halve the mission strength, a senior government official said, New Delhi had taken into account how Indian high commission officials in Islamabad were hardly able to move out of the mission due to fear that they could be picked up and framed in fake cases by Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence. In contrast, Pakistani officials in Delhi have been going around freely, some of them even tapping people for classified information.

Pakistan had last August downgraded diplomatic ties after India scrapped Jammu and Kashmir’s special status and carved out two centrally-administered union territories. The missions of the two countries have since then been headed by a charge d’affaires, not a high commissioner.

17 Taliban terrorists killed, 20 others injured in Afghanistan

KABUL, June 19: At least 17 Taliban terrorists were killed and 20 others suffered injuries in an attack by Afghan forces in Sarozai district in Paktika province on Thursday night, Afghan Defence Ministry announced.

At least 17 Taliban were killed and 12 were wounded as they attacked Afghan forces in Sarozai district, Paktika province, on Thursday night, Tolo News reported quoting Ministry of Defence.

In the operation, one ANA soldier was also killed and two others were wounded, the ministry said.

On Ladakh border incident, China official asked 6 questions. Answers none

BEIJING, June 18: India and China have agreed to deal with the “serious matter” triggered by the violent clash between border troops in eastern Ladakh’s Galwan Valley on Monday in a “just” manner, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Thursday.

“Both sides (India and China have) agreed to deal with the serious matter caused by the conflict at the Valley in a just manner, jointly observe the commander level talks consensus and deescalate the tensions as soon as possible and safeguard the peace and tranquility,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, Zhao Lijian said at the regular ministry briefing on Thursday.

Zhao took six questions on the border incident but managed to skirt it all by repeating statements and not revealing China’s casualty figures.

He declined to respond to queries on reports of China building a dam on the Galwan river at the Sino-Indian border to obstruct its flow.

To a question on whether the confrontation started when the Indian troops arrived to demolish structures set up by China along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), Zhao reiterated China’s allegation, squarely blaming the Indian troops for the incident.

“The right and wrong of this case is very clear and responsibility doesn’t lie with the Chinese side,” he said, adding that China has provided the details of the case.

Twenty Indian Army soldiers, including a colonel, were killed in the clashes with Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh on Monday night.

Beijing hasn’t revealed the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) casualty numbers though China’s government-controlled official media has acknowledged it without mentioning numbers.

Zhao reiterated Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi’s statement, which was issued after he had a telephone conversation with India’s external affairs minister S Jaishankar.

The Indian minister conveyed India’s protest in “strongest terms” to Beijing and said the unprecedented development will have “serious impact” on the bilateral ties. He asked the Chinese side to reassess its actions and take corrective steps, the ministry of external affairs said in a statement in New Delhi.

Separately on Thursday, Hua Chunying, director general of the Chinese foreign ministry’s information department, said India must not underestimate its firm will to safeguard its territorial sovereignty.

“India must not misjudge the current situation or underestimate China’s firm will to safeguard its territorial sovereignty,” Hua tweeted.

“Indian front-line troops broke the consensus and crossed the Line of Actual Control, deliberately provoking and attacking Chinese officers and soldiers, thus triggering fierce physical conflicts and causing casualties,” she said in a follow-up tweet.

A large number of Indian and Chinese troops have been locked in an eyeball-to-eyeball situation in Galwan Valley and other areas of eastern Ladakh for the last five weeks, since May, including in Pangong Tso, Galwan Valley, Demchok and Daulat Beg Oldie in eastern Ladakh.

Taiwan jets again 'drive away' intruding Chinese fighter plane

TAIPEI, June 16: Taiwan air force jets “drove away” a Chinese fighter plane that briefly entered Taiwan’s air defence identification zone on Tuesday, the defence ministry said, reporting the third intrusion in a week.

The single J-10 fighter was given radio warnings to leave before the Taiwanese air force jets ushered the intruder out of the airspace southwest of the island, the ministry said.

On Tuesday last week, the ministry said several Su-30 fighters, some of China’s most advanced jets, crossed into the same airspace and were also warned to leave.

On Friday, the ministry said a Chinese Y-8, a propeller aircraft based on a Soviet-era design some of which have been retrofitted as surveillance aircraft, was warned too by Taiwan’s air force to leave the air space, again in the southwest.

The Y-8 flight came a few hours after Taiwan said it had carried out missile tests off its eastern coast.

Taiwan has complained that China, which claims the democratic island as its own, has stepped up military activities in recent months, menacing Taiwan even as the world deals with the coronavirus pandemic.

China has not commented publicly on the last week of Chinese air force activity near Taiwan. Beijing routinely says such exercises are nothing unusual and are designed to show the country’s determination to defend its sovereignty.

China has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control. One of China’s most senior generals last month said China would attack if there was no other way of stopping Taiwan becoming independent.

China is deeply suspicious of Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, whom it accuses of being a separatist intent on declaring formal independence. Tsai says Taiwan is already an independent country called the Republic of China, its official name.

The United States has stepped up its military activities near the island too, with semi-regular navy voyages through the narrow Taiwan Strait.

Pak arrests 2 Indian High Commission Staffers; Later Releases

NEW DELHI, June 15: Two Indian High Commission staffers reported missing in Islamabad since 8 AM have been found, the government said late Monday night, sharing a notification from Pakistan's Foreign Affairs Ministry that claimed the two, both drivers, had been involved in a road accident.

A FIR (first information report) filed against them said they had been found with fake currency notes.

Earlier today government sources said the staffers were in the custody of Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence (ISI).

New Delhi had complained to the Pakistani government after the two went missing. The External Affairs Ministry had summoned the Pakistani envoy.

The incident comes weeks after two Pakistani officials at the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi were accused of espionage and deported. The two worked in the visa section in Delhi and were allegedly caught in the act of spying.

Several top Indian diplomats in Pakistan have also been aggressively tailed in Islamabad over the last several days and India has protested against the excessive surveillance.

The vehicle of India's Charge d'affaires Gaurav Ahluwalia was chased by Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) member recently. A biker was seen following the official's car.

In March, the Indian High Commission in Pakistan sent a strong protest note to the foreign ministry in Islamabad protesting against the harassment of its officers and staff.

In the note, India cited 13 such instances just in March and asked Pakistan to put an end to them. The government also said Pakistan should "investigate the incidents urgently and instruct the relevant agencies to ensure that these do not recur," according to a news agency.

Ties between India and Pakistan have been severely strained over the past few years and have worsened with recent incidents of firing at the border and terror strikes in Kashmir.

Nepal Parliament approves new map as dispute with India escalates

KATHMANDU, June 13: The lower house of Nepal's Parliament on Saturday approved a new map of the country, including areas disputed with India, the speaker of the national legislature said.

The move signals a hardening of Nepal's position over a decades-long border dispute that has strained ties between the South Asian neighbours.

India has rejected Nepal's new map, calling it a "unilateral act" that is not based on historical facts or evidence.

Nepal published its revised map in May after India inaugurated an 80km (50 miles) road connecting its northern Uttarakhand state with Lipulekh on the border with Tibet that passes through the land Nepal says belongs to it.

The map shows a sliver of land on the northwest tip of Nepal as the Nepali territory.

Agni Prasad Sapkota, the speaker of Nepal's House of Representatives, said the new map was approved by 258 out of 275 members of Parliament, exceeding the required two-thirds majority. There were no votes against.

The map must also be passed by the National Assembly, the Parliament's upper chamber, and approved by President Bidhya Devi Bhandari before it becomes a part of the constitution.

Prachanda, a former prime minister and chief of the ruling Nepal Communist Party, said Nepal did not want to complicate the matter and seeks a peaceful settlement.

"We want to resolve the issue with India through peaceful talks at the political and diplomatic levels," Prachanda, the former Maoist rebel chief, who still goes by his war nom de guerre, said in Parliament on Saturday.

There was no immediate comment from India on the parliamentary vote.

Chinese diplomat links Ladakh standoff to scrapped Art 370

NEW DELHI, June 12: The spokesman of the Chinese embassy in Pakistan created a flutter in diplomatic circles by appearing to suggest the standoff between Indian and Chinese border troops was linked to New Delhi’s decision to scrap Jammu and Kashmir’s special status last year.

Wang Xianfeng, whose Twitter bio describes him as press officer at the Chinese mission in Islamabad, included in his tweet a link to an article by a scholar from an influential think tank affiliated with China’s ministry of state security or main intelligence agency, which also suggested a connection between the border tensions and the change in Kashmir’s status.

“India’s actions of unilaterally changing the status quo of Kashmir and continuing to exacerbate regional tensions have posed a challenge to the sovereignty of China and Pakistan and made the India-Pakistan relations and China-India relations more complex,” Wang tweeted.

People familiar with developments said Wang is responsible for liaising with the Pakistani media. Though the tweet could represent his personal opinion, this is the first time a Chinese official has sought to link the border standoff with the change in Kashmir’s status, including the creation of the union territory of Ladakh, which particularly angered China.

India and China are currently engaged through diplomatic and military channels for an “early resolution” of the border standoff after what Indian officials have described as a “limited military disengagement” along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh, the focus of the tensions.

When India scrapped Jammu and Kashmir’s special status on August 5 last year, the Chinese foreign ministry had issued two statements criticising the development, including one that focused on the splitting of the state into union territories.

This statement, while urging India to be “cautious” on the border issue and to avoid “actions that further complicate the border issue”, said: “China has always opposed India’s inclusion of Chinese territory in India’s administrative jurisdiction in the western part of the Sino-Indian border.”
This was a reference to the area in Ladakh that New Delhi claims but is controlled by Beijing.

Wang’s tweet linked to the article by scholar Wang Shida of the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, which began by saying India had since last August “taken constant actions to unilaterally change the status quo of Kashmir and continued to exacerbate regional tensions”.

The article, titled “India blinded by ‘double confidence’”, said India’s move to change the status quo in Kashmir “constitutes a serious threat to regional peace” and “posed a challenge to the sovereignty of Pakistan and China”.

“On the Chinese side, India ‘opened up new territory on the map’, incorporated part of the areas under the local jurisdiction of Xinjiang and Tibet into its Ladakh union territory, and placed Pakistani-administered Kashmir within its so-called union territories of Jammu and Kashmir,” the article said.

“This forced China into the Kashmir dispute, stimulated China and Pakistan to take counter-actions on the Kashmir issue, and dramatically increased the difficulty in resolving the border issue between China and India,” it added.

The article noted that China’s foreign minister Wang Yi had conveyed his country’s position on these issues to external affairs minister S Jaishankar when he visited Beijing last year – that “India’s moves challenged China’s sovereign rights and interests and violated the agreement on maintaining peace and tranquillity in the border areas between the two countries”.

At the time, Jaishankar had informed the Chinese side that India’s action was a purely internal matter with no consequences for the country’s external boundaries.

Amitabh Mathur, a former special secretary in the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), questioned the timing of the Chinese official’s tweet and said it underscored the complex issues involved in the ongoing standoff.

“It seems as if the Chinese are leaning on us and the situation isn’t as simple as some are making it out to be. It’s also strange that such a tweet emanated from a Chinese official in Islamabad. There is a Pakistani connection to it and it’s almost as if the Chinese are trying to reassure the Pakistanis,” he said.

India-China Major Generals meet for 5th time to ease border tensions

NEW DELHI, June 12: Army delegations from India and China, led by major general-ranked officers, on Friday held discussions in eastern Ladakh again to resolve the standoff between border troops as defence minister Rajnath Singh met the military brass here and reviewed the situation along the disputed Line of Actual Control (LAC), two officers said on condition of anonymity.

This was the fifth meeting between the two major generals to break the stalemate that began with a violent confrontation between rival patrols near Pangong Tso on the night of May 5-6.

The two officers last met at Patrolling Point 14 near the Galwan area on Wednesday as part of continuing efforts to resolve the confrontation that eased slightly with limited disengagement of forces at some LAC hotspots earlier this week.

Friday’s meeting between major general Abhijit Bapat, commander of the Karu-based HQs 3 Infantry Division, and his Chinese counterpart went on for nearly five hours, said one of the officers cited above.

In Delhi, the defence minister was briefed on the ongoing border scrap and the status of the military-level dialogue to resolve it at a meeting with chief of defence staff General Bipin Rawat and the service chiefs, said the second officer cited above.

Earlier this week, the two sides began what Indian officials described as a “limited military disengagement” at three hotspots along the LAC – Galwan Valley, Patrolling Point 15 and Hot Springs.

The limited disengagement happened after a meeting between Lieutenant General Harinder Singh, commander of Leh-based 14 Corps, and Major General Liu Lin, commander of the People’s Liberation Army, in the South Xinjiang region last Saturday.

The focus is now on resolving the situation on the northern bank of Pangong Tso, which has been at the centre of the ongoing border scrap and where troops are still locked in a face-off.

Last month’s violent confrontations between Indian and Chinese soldiers in eastern Ladakh and north Sikkim triggered a military build-up on both sides of the LAC that stretched from Ladakh to Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh, as reported by Hindustan Times on Friday.

The Chinese build-up began immediately after clashes between border troops in Ladakh and Sikkim on May 5-6 and May 9, and predated the June 6 meeting between Lieutenant General Singh and his Chinese counterpart at Moldo on the Chinese side of the LAC.

India and China are continuing diplomatic and military engagements for an “early resolution” of the stand-off between border troops, the external affairs ministry said on Thursday. More military talks are planned in the coming days to ease border tensions.

French forces kill Al-Qaeda chief

PARIS, June 11: In a desert wilderness in Mali, close to the Algerian border, pitted with isolated rocks and weighed by oppressive heat, French special forces and combat helicopters begin an operation.

At its climax, they claim one of the greatest successes of France’s deployment in the Sahel region of north Africa -- the killing of the head of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) Abdelmalek Droukdel.

The French military, for the first time, provided details on Thursday of how late last week it “neutralised” the man it has called “the third deputy” of Al-Qaeda’s leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri.

Officials describe the death of the Algerian Droukdel as the fruit of meticulous intelligence work.

This was concluded by a military intervention in broad daylight, about ten kilometres (6.2 miles) from the Algerian border, east of the Malian town of Tessalit.

A source close to the operation said about fifteen French special forces were dropped by at least two transport helicopters, as well as a Tiger combat helicopter and a Gazelle multipurpose helicopter, with a drone in support.

“The capture of Droukdel was not possible,” said the source, who asked not to be named.

“The goal is not necessarily to kill,” said the official. But “in combat, the men see just rocks” with combatants cowering behind them. “They don’t know who is behind the gun”. The source added: “This type of individual does not surrender”.

The army is not giving details of the exchanges that took place during the operation, merely confirming that fighting took place at close quarters.

“We knew that there was a target of interest in the region for two days. After that, it was all a work of mutual support, between the different sources of intelligence,” said the source.

“It is a case of building it up,” said the official, without revealing the origin of the information but confirming the help of the United States.

Once the objective was identified and located, conditions in northern Mali at the beginning of the rainy season slowed down the progress of forces on the ground.

In the operation, one individual was captured and handed to the Malian authorities after being interrogated by the French forces.

But the soldiers also seized important digital material, including phones, cards and computers. Analysing them may help explain what Droukdel, who was usually very discreet, was doing in the region.

There has for some time been major fighting between groups affiliated with Al-Qaeda with those of Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (IS-GS).

These have been “violent” fights with “losses on both sides”, according to the French source.

It is has not been ruled out that this could have prompted Droukdel’s presence in the area.

“It’s a real question,” said the source, expressing hope that analysis would shed more light on this.

The IS-GS was designated in January as the number one enemy of France’s 5,000 strong anti-jihadist force Barkhane and its G5 Sahel allies of Mauritania, Chad, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso.

But, in the end, it was an Al-Qaeda figure who was killed in this operation.

“The fact that today we have focused a certain number of our forces on the most virulent and urgent threat has not distracted us from the surveillance of other branches”, said the source.

Once the operation was finished, the special forces “applied the standards of armed conflict: the enemy combatants were buried at the scene”.

Meanwhile the prisoner taken “will answer for his actions before the courts”, said the source.

The official praised the operational efficiency of the French forces on the ground and in the air, saying they were capable of deploying in a clandestine situation in full gear in temperatures of 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit).

In military terms, these are “extremely rustic conditions”, said the source.

Positive consensus on border talks with India: China

BEIJING, June 10: China on Wednesday refused to give details about the disengagement of border troops of the two countries along the line of actual control (LAC) in Ladakh but said both sides were trying to “ease the situation” following dialogue between diplomats and military officers.

The Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying made the remarks in the backdrop of reports in Indian media, which said that the armies of India and China had undertaken a “limited disengagement” in eastern Ladakh to demonstrate intent to end the month-long border standoff ahead of another round of military talks on Wednesday.

Asked about the reports of the troops on both sides disengaging and moving back to their previous positions, Hua only said at the regular ministry briefing that both sides are taking steps to ease the situation along the borders.

She did not specifically refer to the military talks that India and China held on Saturday to resolve the problem.

“Recently the diplomatic and military channels of China and India held effective communication on the situation along the border and reached positive consensus,” she said.

“The two sides are following this consensus to take actions to ease the situation along the borders,” Hua added.

Last week, the Chinese foreign ministry had said the situation along the border was “stable and controllable”.

Anonymous sources in New Delhi have told the media that the two armies have begun “disengagement” around patrolling points 14 and 15 in Galwan Valley and another in the Hot Spring area, adding the Chinese side has even moved back up to 1.5 km in two areas.

The trigger for the latest round of standoff was China’s opposition to India laying a key road near the Pangong Tso Lake besides constructing another road connecting the Darbuk-Shayok-Daulat Beg Oldie road in Galwan Valley.

Taiwanese fighters drive away Chinese intruder jets

BEIJING, June 9: China dispatched fighter aircraft across the Taiwan Strait hours after an US transport plane flew over the island of Taiwan on Tuesday, raising military and diplomatic tension in the region by several notches.

Taipei scrambled its own jets in response to warn off the aircraft from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force, reports from the island said quoting the defence ministry.

The Russia-made Su-30 fighters were given verbal warnings to leave and Taiwanese air force jets “drove away” the intruders, the Taiwanese defence ministry added.

“The military detected multiple numbers of Sukhoi Su-30 fighter jets flying southwest into Taiwan briefly this morning,” the Taiwanese defence ministry said, adding the air force immediately scrambled jets to shadow, intercept and disperse them through radio warnings.

“The military has full surveillance and control of all activities in the sea and air that surround Taiwan, and the public can rest assured of our capability to uphold security for our national territory,” the ministry statement added.

Earlier in the morning, an US C-40 military transport aircraft was identified flying over the west coastline of Taiwan.

It had taken off from an airforce base in Okinawa in Japan and flew over Taiwan without landing.

In Beijing, there was no official statement on the rapid developments of the day over the Taiwan Strait.

Beijing claims the self-governing democracy of Taiwan as a breakaway region and has never renounced the use of force to reunify the island.

Tension has been simmering between China, Taiwan and the US in the region, most recently after Washington struck a deal to sell torpedoes to Taipei.

Chinese state media reported last week that PLA has held frequent and intensive amphibious landing and naval drills in what analysts said are sending warnings to “Taiwan secessionists”.

In one training operation, the PLA 74th Group Army used a large civilian cargo ship to transport more than 50 tanks, armored vehicles and infantry fighting vehicles across the sea, according to a report by national broadcaster, Chinese Central Television.

India’s ties with Nepal set for deep freeze after Kathmandu’s decisive step on new map

NEW DELHI, June 9: Nepal’s lower house on Tuesday evening made a strong pitch in favour of the constitution amendment bill to redraw Nepal’s political map that could lead to a freeze in relations between Kathmandu and New Delhi.

The new political map pushed hard by the KP Sharma Oli government is set to clear the first legislative hurdle in the lower house. The constitution amendment bill will next go to the 59-member National Assembly where the ruling Communist Party of Nepal has an overwhelming majority.

The map, cleared by the Oli Cabinet last month, counts Indian territories of Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura as its own. Its passage by the cabinet on May 18 had angered India that asked Nepal to “refrain from such unjustified cartographic assertion” for an “artificial enlargement of territorial claims”.

That message from New Delhi appeared to have gone unheard in Kathmandu.

The new map was Prime Minister Oli’s effort to whip up ultra-nationalistic sentiments at India’s cost and consolidate his weakening hold on the government and the ruling Communist Party of Nepal. It appeared to have bought Oli time.

Opposition parties that have been attacking the Oli government for his handling of the economy and Covid-19 found themselves coming around to back PM Oli in the lower house on Tuesday. PM Oli needs a two-third majority in both houses of Nepal’s Parliament.

It was supported by political parties across the spectrum - 83 MPs spoke at Tuesday’s meeting - but the formal approval could take some time as the proposal for consideration of the bill “was adopted with lawmakers given 72 hours to file an amendment to the bill”. It would be passed once the chief whips of political parties agree that no amendment is required.

There has been no formal response from New Delhi to Tuesday’s development.

New Delhi is furious at Nepal’s political leaders creating a boundary dispute with India to serve their respective domestic political interests and is expected to cold shoulder requests for a dialogue.

“Once Nepal cabinet and then parliament backed changes to its map to incorporate Indian territory, there isn’t a lot to talk about,” a senior government official said hours after Nepal’s foreign minister Pradeep Gyawali spoke of his country’s desire to talk to New Delhi to resolve the boundary issue.

“We have expressed time and again that Nepal wants to sit at the table to resolve this problem,” said Pradeep Gyawali.

The foreign minister’s boss Oli had ignited the row after India reissued its map to incorporate changes in Jammu and Kashmir that had been carved into two union territories. Like in all previous maps, this one too continued to count Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura as part of the Indian state of Uttarakhand.

The two countries planned to hold a round of discussions at the foreign secretary’s level to address Nepal’s concerns but the meetings could not be scheduled for one reason or the other.

Oli’s government, however, renewed the attacks after India inaugurated an 80-km road in Uttarakhand that almost goes up till Lipulekh Pass at the India-China border. This project essentially involved building a metalled road connecting Dharchula town in Uttarakhand to the Lipulekh pass.

New Delhi was surprised when Kathmandu protested over the road that had been built in indian territory.

This area, spread over 330 sq km near Nepal’s western tri-junction with India and China, had always been part of India in every map that had been issued for more than a century and in terms of the ground situation, a senior official said. This claim was also accepted by the Chinese when it inked a pact with India to trade via Lipulekh pass back in 1954. When the two sides mentioned LipuLekh as a bilateral trade route in a 2015 joint statement sixty years later, Nepal registered its protest.

Behind the sharp rhetoric from Kathmandu over the road in recent weeks, Indian officials said Oli appeared to be aiming to immortalize himself in Nepal’s history as the prime minister who stood up to its big neighbour. Quite like Prime Minister Kirtinidhi Bista who persuaded Indira Gandhi in 1969 to wind up Indian military posts along the Nepal frontier. When former foreign secretary Shyam Saran was India’s ambassador to Kathmandu, Bista told him that he counted his conversation with Gandhi as his life’s “greatest moment”.

In recent years, Indian officials said Nepal politicians had found themselves unable to take a stand on India and found it politically expedient to lay the blame at India’s doors.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in contrast, had gone an extra mile to accommodate the himalayan nation.

Like when the two countries were looking at a new pact to replace the 1950 Treaty of Peace and Friendship between the two countries, Modi had messaged early in his first stint as prime minister that Kathmandu could put together the first draft of the new treaty which the two sides could discuss.

When Nepal had reservations over the 50:50 funding format proposed for the Pancheshwar dam project, Modi had again asked Nepal to contribute what it could and promised to pool in the rest.

Chinese army carries out large-scale drill on border with India

BEIJING, June 8: The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of China has carried out a large-scale drill involving thousands of paratroopers to check its preparedness in transporting soldiers and armoured vehicles from a central Chinese province to border areas to the northwest of the country.

The largescale “maneuver operation” was done in the backdrop of the ongoing border standoff with India, the nationalistic tabloid Global Times and national broadcaster CCTV said in reports.

The news on Chinese state media came out on a day when New Delhi said that India and China will continue military and diplomatic engagements to resolve a weeks-old standoff along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

This was after talks were held between delegations led Lieutenant General Harinder Singh, commander of Leh-based 14 Corps and a delegation led by Major General Liu Lin, commander of the South Xinjiang military region, at Moldo on the Chinese side of the LAC on Saturday.

The reports didn’t give the location where the soldiers and the armoured vehicles were transported to but said enough to indicate that the drill was a message to India.

Using civilian airlines, logistical transportation channels and railways, several thousand paratroopers under a PLA Air Force airborne brigade recently maneuvered from Hubei, which is in central China, to an undisclosed location in the plateaus of northwestern China thousands of kilometres away, China Central Television (CCTV) reported on Saturday.

“Several hundred pieces of military equipment including armoured vehicles and huge batches of supplies were also involved in the operation, which ended successfully in just a few hours,” the report said.

The maneuver was completed in a few hours, the report said.

“This maneuver mission saw significant breakthroughs not only in the scale of mobilised troops but also means of transportation. [Using civilian transportation] substantially expanded our means of transporting forces and increased efficiency in maneuvering an entire organisation of troops,” Major Colonel Mao Lei, head of the training department at the airborne brigade, said on CCTV.

“Groups of tanks and armored vehicles attached to the 76th Group Army under the PLA Western Theater Command also conducted a long-distance maneuver on May 14,” according to Chinese military media outlet China Military, quoted by GT.

Last week, another report in the Global Times had said that the PLA’s Tibet Military Command recently “...sent troops to a high-altitude region at an elevation of 4,700 meters at night for infiltration exercises behind enemy lines and tested their combat capability under a harsh environment”.

India, China agree to peacefully resolve Ladakh standoff

NEW DELHI, June 7: India and China are taking incremental steps to resolve the month-long troops standoff at four points in eastern Ladakh, people familiar with the developments said after the meeting between military commanders of the two armies at the Moldo-Chushul border meeting.

Saturday’s 7-hour-long meeting was the first meeting at the level of lieutenant generals of the two armies locked in the border standoff that began with a confrontation between rival patrols near Pangong lake on May 5. Over the next few days, three more standoff points emerged near Galwan River.

Lt General Harinder Singh, the Leh-based 14 Corps Commander, led a 10-member Indian team. The Chinese delegation was led by South Xinjiang Military District Commander Major General Liu Lin.

The discussion, said to have been held in a ‘cordial and positive atmosphere’, stretched well into the Saturday evening with both sides not only discussing the standoff points but also the friction caused by upgradation of border infrastructure on both sides.

“The direction of the military commanders talks was positive and both sides showed the inclination to resolve…..so there were good signs,” said a senior official.

But the two sides also expect the resolution to be a long-drawn process. They have, however, agreed that the militaries should not allow the situation along the Line of Actual Control to escalate.

“It is going to be a deliberate process where the two sides negotiate and resolve the differences, step by step,” a person familiar with the development said, requesting anonymity

It is understood that the two military commanders favoured continuing the talks at the brigade and battalion commander level to resolve all the outstanding issues, point by point, the person mentioned above said. This implies that the next round of discussions could be led by teams led by Brigadier and Colonel-rank officers.

An external affairs ministry statement released on Sunday said: “Both sides agreed to peacefully resolve the situation in the border areas in accordance with various bilateral agreements and keeping in view the agreement between the leaders that peace and tranquility in the India-China border regions is essential for the overall development of bilateral relations.”

While the statement notes that “early resolution” of the stand-off would contribute to further development of bilateral relationship, senior officials say that the situation will be eventually resolved to the mutual satisfaction of both the sides.

India and China have maintained communications through established diplomatic and military channels to address the situation in areas along the India-China border.

Saturday’s discussion between the military commanders was preceded by a ground-setting video conference between diplomats of the two countries that resolved to not allow their differences to escalate into disputes while respecting each other’s concerns.

The border row coincides with the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries that the two sides had planned to celebrate with 70 events. “Both sides also noted that this year marked the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries and agreed that an early resolution would contribute to the further development of the relationship,” the MEA statement said.

India, China hold diplomatic parleys on LAC standoff

NEW DELHI, June 5: A day ahead of crucial talks between Indian and Chinese army commanders on the stand-off along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), the two sides agreed on Friday to handle their differences through peaceful dialogue while respecting each other’s concerns.

Joint secretary (East Asia) Naveen Srivastava of the external affairs ministry held a meeting with Wu Jianghao, director general in China’s foreign ministry, through video conference and reviewed bilateral relations, including the “current developments”, according to a readout from the Indian side.

This was the first formal diplomatic meeting between the two sides since tensions flared along the LAC following violent clashes between hundreds of Indian and Chinese troops in the Sikkim and Ladakh sectors early last month. Army officers of the two sides have held several meetings along the LAC but were unable to break the impasse.

Both sides agreed that in accordance with the guidance provided by their leadership, they “should handle their differences through peaceful discussion bearing in mind the importance of respecting each other’s sensitivities, concerns and aspirations and not allow them to become disputes”, the external affairs ministry said in a brief statement without giving details.

The two sides “recalled the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, that peaceful, stable and balanced relations between India and China will be a positive factor for stability in the current global situation”.

The officials of the two sides also exchanged views on the challenge posed by the Covid-19 pandemic and cooperation at different multilateral forums.

India and China have been in touch through diplomatic and military channels in New Delhi and Beijing to address the border tensions. Joint secretary Srivastava has been involved in these contacts, people familiar with developments said on condition of anonymity.

The people also acknowledged Friday’s meeting was meant to set the stage for the meeting on June 6 between the general officer commanding of Leh-based 14 Corps, Lt Gen Harinder Singh, and his Chinese counterpart.

The army commanders are meeting almost a month after tensions between India and China flared along the LAC, taking bilateral ties to a new low.

India has dismissed China’s contention that its troops were hindering the activities of Chinese troops along the LAC and accused Chinese forces of hindering patrols on the Indian side. The Indian government has also made it clear that it won’t allow any change in the status quo along the LAC and that it will tackle the prevailing situation with “strength and restraint”.

India and Australia sign deal to use each other's military bases

NEW DELHI, June 4: India and Australia have sealed a deal to get access to each other's military bases, the Indian foreign ministry said - a pact that would clear the way for more military exchanges and exercises in the Indo-Pacific.

The mutual logistic support agreement was signed during a virtual summit between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison on Thursday.

The agreement allows Indian and Australian military ships and aircraft to refuel and access maintenance facilities at each other's bases.

India has a similar pact with the United States, which is seen as part of broader security cooperation to balance China's growing economic and military weight in the region.

Indian troops are locked in a standoff with Chinese troops on their disputed border, the most serious crisis in years, on top of concerns about a huge trade imbalance in Beijing's favour.

Australia's trade frictions with China are also growing, and its push last month for an international review into the origins and spread of the novel coronavirus drew opposition from China.

Morrison was due in India in January but was forced to cancel the trip because of the bushfires crisis in Australia.

The holding of the summit now, in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic, showed the importance the two leaders attached to bilateral ties, officials said.

"This is the first time that Prime Minister Modi will be holding a bilateral virtual summit. This signifies the strengthening of ties with Australia and its upward trajectory," Indian foreign ministry spokesman Anurag Srivastava said before the signing of the deal.

India is also considering Australia's participation in annual naval exercises it holds with the US and Japan in the Indian and Pacific Oceans in a cementing of security ties between the four countries, military officials said.

A similar exercise in 2007 had angered China.

China expands high-altitude weapon systems against India

BEIJING, June 1: China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has expanded its specialised high-altitude arsenal of weapons since the 2017 Doklam standoff with India to prepare for future conflicts, a state media report said.

“Since the Doklam standoff with India in 2017, the Chinese military has expanded its arsenal with weapons like the Type 15 tank, Z-20 helicopter and GJ-2 drone that should give China the advantage in high-altitude conflicts should they arise,” the nationalistic tabloid Global Times reported, quoting anonymous military experts.

The listing of new weapons, which could be specifically used against Indian troops by the Communist Party of China (CPC)-controlled news outlet comes in the backdrop of new tensions at the border.

Soldiers of the two countries are eyeball-to-eyeball at four locations along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.

Another group of border troops had clashed at Naku La in Sikkim last month as well.

Several rounds of talks between local military commanders have failed to end the standoff that began with a violent confrontation between rival patrols on May 5-6 near Pangong Tso that left scores of soldiers from both sides injured.

China’s state-run media has described the latest tensions as the worst since the 2017 Doklam (Donglang in Chinese) standoff that lasted 73 days.

The Global Times report didn’t mention whether the new tanks and helicopters have already been deployed at the border but indicated that they could be swiftly operationalised.

The report said that both the Type 15 tank and the PCL-181 howitzer - China’s most advanced vehicle-mounted howitzer, as per the report - were displayed in the high-elevation plateau region of Southwest China’s Tibet Autonomous Region in a China Central Television report on military exercises in January.

The Type 15 tank is the world’s only modern lightweight tank in service, Chinese military magazine Weapon had earlier reported, noting it is equipped with a 105-millimetre gun and advanced sensors that can “devastate enemy light armoured vehicles in regions not suitable for heavy main battle tank deployment”.

“At Airshow China 2018, the Chinese Air Force unveiled the GJ-2 armed reconnaissance drone, which has a higher ceiling and can carry more payload than the previous GJ-1. Reports said it can be used to patrol the long border in high-altitude areas like Tibet.”

The analysts said that the “...specially designed weapons have boosted the Chinese military’s combat capabilities in high-altitude regions, enabling it to better safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

For its first military exercise for 2020, which was held in January, the PLA’s Tibet military command had “...deployed helicopters, armoured vehicles, heavy artillery and anti-aircraft missiles across the region from Lhasa, capital of Tibet, with an elevation of 3,700 meters to border defense frontlines with elevations of more than 4,000 meters,” China Central Television had reported.

Most of the disputed boundary between India and China falls in the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), whose international borders include Nepal and Bhutan.

China threatens Trump with 'firm countermeasures'

BEIJING, June 1: China on Monday fired a salvo of criticism against the US, threatening Washington with “firm countermeasures” if it harms Chinese interests in Hong Kong and saying America is “addicted to quitting” because of President Donald Trump’s decision to leave the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, Zhao Lijian, referring to the largescale protests and riots following the death of African-American George Floyd, added that racial discrimination is a long-standing problem in the US and Beijing hoped the US government would take all necessary measures to deal with the violent law enforcement of police, so as to protect and safeguard the legitimate interests of racial minorities.

Black lives matter and their human rights should be protected, he said.

Current ties between the two countries have increasingly soured in recent months over several issues including on the origins of the coronavirus, arms sales Taiwan and ongoing disputes over trade.

On Hong Kong, Zhao said any move by the US to harm Chinese interests will be met with firm countermeasures, questioning Washington’s decision to begin ending special treatment for Hong Kong as well as actions against Chinese students and companies.

Trump ordered his administration to begin the process of eliminating special US treatment for Hong Kong in response to China’s parliament last week voting to implement a new national security legislation on Hong Kong, which, critics say, could impact the “one country, two systems” mechanism.

The US President, however, hasn’t mentioned a timeline for the withdrawal of the special status.

“The announced measures severely interfere with China’s internal affairs, damage U.S.-China relations, and will harm both sides. China is firmly opposed to this,” Zhao said at the regular ministry briefing on Monday.

“Any words or actions by the U.S. that harm China’s interests will meet with China’s firm counterattack,” he said.

Earlier, Hong Kong’s Beijing-backed government was quoted in news reports as telling the US to keep out of the national security debate, warning that withdrawal of the financial hub’s special status could backfire on the US economy.

On Trump’s announcement that the US would leave the WHO, Zhao said the “…US has become addicted to quitting groups and scrapping treaties”.

Trump announced on Friday the US would cut ties with the WHO, accusing the UN agency of becoming China’s puppet.

Beijing warns India not to side with US

BEIJING, June 1: Amid the rising US-China tensions over a wide range of issues including coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, China has advised India not to get involved in US-China confrontation. Beijing has said that India should not become a US pawn attacking China in a new Cold War or else India would face a massive economic blow amid COVID-19 pandemic.

"With nationalist sentiment on the rise in India, there have been some voices calling for the Indian government to join the new Cold War and exploit its position for more gains. Such irrational voices are nothing but misleading, which should not represent the mainstream voices and sway the Indian government's stance. Fundamentally speaking, India has little to gain from engaging in a US-China conflict over any topic, with more to lose than gain, which is why the Modi government needs to face the new geopolitical development objectively and rationally," said an article published in Global Times, which is a daily tabloid newspaper under the auspices of the Chinese Communist Party's People's Daily newspaper.

The article added that under the current circumstance, India must not include the US factor in its handling of any problem in its relations with China, otherwise it will complicate the relations between Beijing and New Delhi.

Referrign to the recent China-India border tension, the article said that the offer of US mediation in the issue is unnecessary and both India and China are capable of resolving their problems peacefully. The article asserted that there is no need of a third-party intervention in this matter.

"If in a new Cold War, India leans toward the US or becomes a US pawn attacking China, the economic and trade ties between the two Asian neighbors will suffer a devastating blow. And it would be too much for the Indian economy to take such a hit at the current stage," said the article.

The article also mentioned about Indian government's deicsion to lift the nationwide lockdown, noting that though India is yet to flatten the coronavirus cases curve the decision to end the lockdown is understandable, as its economy has been under enormous strain from the lockdown.