Defence

Lt Gen YK Joshi, GOC Ladakh 14 Corps, along with then Northern Army commander Lt Gen Ranbir Singh on a boat patrol in Ladakh’s Panggong lake
Indian Navy is sending a dozen high-powered, bigger capacity and top of the line surveillance equipped steel boats to Ladakh so that the Indian Army can patrol Pangong Tso and match the heavier Type 928 B vessels of the Chinese Army lake fleet. The Pangong Tso lake is at the centre of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aggression in East Ladakh with the Chinese bullying India into ceding territory on both the banks and deliberately pushing the Modi government into retaliatory mode.

While the third senior military commander level talks stretched late into Tuesday night at Chushul, the word out is that they were held in cordial atmosphere with both the Leh Corps Commander and his Xinjiang Military district counterpart discussing the specifics of de-escalation and dis-engagement along the 3488 km Line of Actual Control (LAC).

The decision to send steel hulled boats to Pangong Tso was taken by the tri-services this week with the Navy asked to transport the vessels through C-17 heavy lift transporters to Leh on a priority basis. Apart from signalling Indian intent to stand up strong to any Chinese provocation, the heavier vessels will not be pushed around in the water by PLA boat fleet. Even though there are some logistical issues in transporting the huge boats by plane, solutions are being worked out by both Indian Navy and Army.

The Indian Navy is forwardly deployed on its eastern and western seaboards with its naval fleets monitoring the movement of ships from Andamans Sea to Persian Gulf to prevent any untoward activity.

While ostensibly China is talking peace and disengagement in the East Ladakh, it is quite evident to Indian national security planners that the PLA is actually consolidating on the four stand-off points along the 1597 KM LAC in the western sector. The amassing of troops in the Galwan sector, the building of road at Gogra point, the upgradations of communications at Hot Springs and the massive infra push at the Pangong Tso all shows that the PLA has no intentions to restore status quo ante. Instead, the PLA is hell-bent on provoking Indian Army by trying to nibble more territory and force an escalation on the border.

The Modi government has given Indian military a free hand to deal with the situation on the border as China has decided to turn the difference on the LAC into permanent dispute. The Indian troops and air force are all standing up to the PLA but will not initiate escalation on their own but only responds to the Chinese aggression. Just like 2001 Operation Parakram, Indian Forces are prepared to wait till such time status quo ante is restored in East Ladakh.

Even as the world, particularly the US and Russia, are waking up to new Chinese aggression, the Middle kingdom has always been a civilizational concept with Beijing rulers in the past two centuries. In this concept the only refined society is China with the rest of world being barbarians or tributary states. By contesting sovereignty of Senkaku islands with Japan, contesting Taiwan security with US, contesting South China Sea with ASEAN and forcing India into a military stand-off in Ladakh, China is cocking a snook at the globe.

New Delhi: The Commander-level talks between India and China in Moldo on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) on Monday have been fruitful as both the sides decided to disengage the forces locked in a bitter standoff for the last six weeks in eastern Ladakh.

Amid escalating tension following the killing of 20 Indian soldiers in a clash at Galwan Valley on June 15 night, nearly 11-hour-long talks were held in a “cordial, positive and constructive atmosphere” to decide the modalities for disengagement from all areas in eastern Ladakh. Similar talks were earlier held on June 6, but China backtracked from its stand.

Army Chief General Manoj Mukund Narwane’s second visit to Leh since the faceoff started between the troops of India and China since May 5 holds a great significance. He met injured soldiers of the Galvan Valley prior to meeting Army Commanders in Ladakh and the local MP.

Sources told media that the Army Chief was briefed about the Commander-level talks as the attention has now shifted to Pangong Lake, where Chinese soldiers are currently stationed with all their military paraphernalia for about one and a half months. They are about 8 kilometers inside the LAC.

Amid positive indications of Commander level talks, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said that both the nations have agreed to reduce tension and create peace through dialogue. Talks are being held at both military and diplomatic levels, but the question is how to trust China.

Indian Army is now adamant that the Chinese troops will have shift behind the LAC in the same position where it was before May 2. After the Galwan Valley, the bone of contention between India and China is now Pangong Lake. India has raised its objections to China’s occupation from Finger 8 to Finger 4 in the Pangong Lake. On May 5, the scuffle between Indian and Chinese soldiers first started at Pangong Lake.

The nearly 3500-kilometer long border between India and China passes through plains and mountains, but in the Pangong Lake, LAC passes through water. The lake is situated 13900 feet high covering a length of about 134 kilometers. Of this, about 66 percent is occupied by China as the lake originates from Tibet.

Since Pangong Lake passes through mountains, lower parts of these mountains are called fingers because of their finger-like shape. Finger 4 is occupied by India which also has a post between Finger 3 and 4. Indian Army patrols from west to east till Finger 8 considering its claims till this region.

China, however, extends its claim till Finger 2 and to monitor that it has made a military post on Finger 8. The latest row started when China objected to the Indian Army’s patrolling till Finger 8, and later occupied ​​8 km area between Finger 8 and Finger 4, besides building bunkers.

China wants to occupy areas near Galwan and Pangong Lake which have otherwise been part of India or have been subject to dispute between India and China. This appears to be the reason why China does not want to settle the border dispute with India. As it will not be able to trespass into Indian territories. Knowing this, India also wants to curb Chinese action near Pangong Lake.

Zee News earlier told you that the mastermind of China’s misadventure on the LAC is General Zhao Zhongqi, who is the Commander of the Western Theater Command, which is deployed against India. The way the Chinese Army made incursions at several places along the LAC is reportedly the handiwork of General Zhongqi.

The 73-day-long Doklam dispute of 2017, when Indian soldiers stood like a rock in front of Chinese and finally China had to retreat. The mastermind of the Doklam was General Zhongqi, who once again made incursions in the Eastern Ladakh and created an embarrassing situation for China.

Zhao Zhongqi is said to be the blue-eyed boy of President Xi Jinping. General Zhongqi reportedly wants to become vice chairman of China’s powerful Central Military Commission (CMC), which is headed by President Xi.

The CMC takes important decisions related to the Chinese military. The PLA’s misadventure in the Galwan Valley under General Zhongqi’s command appears to have President Xi Jinping’s consent.
But the situation at Pangong Lake still continues to be the big bone of contention as the dialogue was held amid a massive build at the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

Sources said discussions are likely to continue and a plan for de-escalation will be drawn out.

Other than Pangong Lake, where the Chinese troops are occupying the Finger 4 area of the lake that has been traditionally under Indian control, situation in Galwan Valley, where troops continue to hold guard from both sides, was also discussed.

Not only have the Chinese come and camped in big numbers on the northern bank of the lake, but also enhanced their fortifications, observation posts and troop deployment between Finger 4 and Finger 8 that was considered a grey zone even though India has claimed territory till Finger 8.

The lake is divided into 8 fingers. In military parlance, the mountainous spurs jutting out into the lake are referred to as fingers.

Like in the earlier meeting on June 6 between the top commanders, India has been asking for status quo to be restored to what it was before the May buildup.

Meanwhile, Indian Army chief Gen MM Naravane will be visiting Ladakh on Tuesday in the backdrop of a continued troop buildup at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) after the violent clash of June 15 in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed while the Chinese also suffered casualties.

The visit is planned to assess the operational preparedness and get a first-hand account of the ground situation from the commanders there.

The army chief’s visit comes a day after the marathon meeting of Corps Commanders of Indian and Chinese armies on Monday that went on for 11 hours.

The army chief on his two-day visit is also expected to visit Srinagar amid heightened anti-terror operations.

The military brass including top army commanders from across the country are meeting in Delhi to make an assessment of preparedness both on the Pakistan and China borders.

Indian, Chinese militaries agree to disengage from friction points in eastern Ladakh, PTI quotes sources. The talks were held in a ‘cordial, positive and constructive atmosphere’ and it was decided that modalities for disengagement from all areas in eastern Ladakh would be taken forward by both the sides

In a positive move, Indian and Chinese armies have arrived at a consensus to “disengage” from all friction points in eastern Ladakh at a marathon meeting of top military commanders of the two sides on Monday, official sources said.

The talks were held in a “cordial, positive and constructive atmosphere” and it was decided that modalities for disengagement from all areas in eastern Ladakh would be taken forward by both the sides, they said.

The Indian delegation at the nearly 11-hour talks was led by Lt Gen Harinder Singh, the commander of the 14 Corps, while the Chinese side was headed by Commander of the Tibet Military District Maj Gen Liu Lin.

The talks were held in the midst of escalating tension between the two countries following the killing of 20 Indian Army personnel by China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in a violent clash in Galwan Valley on June 15.

India termed the incident as a “premeditated and planned action” by the Chinese troops.

“There was a mutual consensus to disengage. Modalities for disengagement from all friction areas in eastern Ladakh were discussed and will be taken forward by both the sides,” said a source.

In the meeting, the Indian delegation strongly raised the “premeditated” assault by Chinese troops on Indian soldiers in the Galwan Valley and demanded immediate withdrawal of Chinese troops from all areas in eastern Ladakh where the two militaries are on a standoff, people familiar with the development said.

The Indian side also suggested bringing down the number of troops by both sides in their rear bases along the Line of Actual Control, the 3,500 km de-facto border, they said.

The first round of the Lt Gen-level talks were held on June 6 during which both sides finalised an agreement to disengage gradually from all standoff points beginning with Galwan Valley.

However, the situation in the region deteriorated following the Galwan Valley clashes as the two sides significantly bolstered their deployments in most areas.

On Sunday, the government gave the armed forces “full freedom” to give a “befitting” response to any Chinese misadventure along the LAC.

The Army has already sent thousands of additional troops to forward locations along the border in the last one week. The IAF has also moved a sizeable number of its frontline Sukhoi 30 MKI, Jaguar, Mirage 2000 aircraft and Apache attack helicopters to several key air bases, including Leh and Srinagar, following the clashes.

The talks on Monday were held at the Moldo meeting point on Chinese side of Chushul sector in eastern Ladakh and it is learnt that the China’s PLA asked for the meeting. The Lt General-level meeting of June 6 was also sought by the Chinese side.

After the Galwan Valley clash, the two sides held at least three rounds of talks to explore ways to bring down tension.

The two armies were engaged in a standoff in Galwan and several other areas of eastern Ladakh since May 5 when their troops clashed on the banks of the Pangong Tso.

The situation in eastern Ladakh deteriorated after around 250 Chinese and Indian soldiers were engaged in a violent face-off on May 5 and 6. The incident in Pangong Tso was followed by a similar incident in north Sikkim on May 9.

Prior to the clashes, both sides had been asserting that pending the final resolution of the boundary issue, it was necessary to maintain peace and tranquillity in the border areas. PTI

As military build-up on both sides of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh continues, a constant stream of IAF heavy lift aircraft have airlifted dozens of additional tanks and armoured personnel carriers to the Himalayan heights for beefing up Indian firepower.

Amidst carrying out combat air patrols over Ladakh and maintaining operational readiness platforms at various airbases to scramble fighters, the IAF is using its American C-17s and Russian IL-76s freighters for carrying out multiple sorties out of Chandigarh and other places over the past weeks for the purpose.

Some elements of armoured formations based in the Western Sector, which include the newer T-90s, have been earmarked for the Ladakh frontier.

Prior to the current face-off with China, which witnessed extremely violent moments, India had three armoured regiments stationed in Ladakh, amounting to the equivalent of an armoured brigade.

The manner of concentration and employment of an armoured formation in high-altitude areas is a lot different than that in the plains, the tradition domain of mechanised forces.

“This is for the first time since 1962 that tanks and mechanised elements have been urgently airlifted to Ladakh to meet operational requirements and beef up offensive and defensive capabilities when both sides are locked in close confrontation,” an officer said.

“Tanks already stationed there were also airlifted over a period of time, but that was done under different conditions,” he added.

During the 1962 Sino-Indian war, the IAF had used the AN-12 transport aircraft to ferry six AMX light tanks of 30 Lancers, to Chushul, just south of the Pangong Tso lake, another flashpoint in the ongoing stand-off.

In the 1990s, the IAF began airlifting T-72 tanks and BMP-1/2 mechanised infantry combat vehicles in the IL-76 aircraft to Leh. The doctrine of deploying tanks in Ladakh saw a reversal subsequently, but was revived again with the forming up of three armoured units picking up in 2014

The Army’s perspective plans call for an armoured brigade each in the northern and eastern sectors along with three additional mechanised infantry battalions outfitted for high-altitude operations, but financial constraints have cast a deep shadow over the process.

China, on the other hand, is reported to have an armoured division and two motorised infantry divisions in Lanzhou Military Region opposite Ladakh and two armoured brigades and four motorised infantry divisions in Chengdu Military Region opposite Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. A division has three brigades.

Though mountainous and extremely rugged, there are some relatively flat areas in the Ladakh sector like Chushal and Demchok where tanks and armoured personnel carriers can be employed for defence as well as offence.

Besides adding to firepower, tanks also act as a deterrent. While the general altitude where tanks would be operating in Ladakh is 12,000-14,000 feet, the Army has carried out successful trials of driving up tanks to altitudes above 18,000 feet.

The employment of tanks in such a terrain and altitude also has some constraints. Rarefied air affects engine performance and freezing temperatures affect fuel and lubricants. Tank crew also requires special cold weather clothing.

Harvard study says India holds conventional edge over China. Check DetailsA recent study at US’ esteemed Harvard University has said that India has a conventional advantage over China to avoid any 1962 level setback in case the situation escalates between the two countries.
Harvard study says India holds conventional edge against China.
Indian Army and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) have been eyeball to eyeball in the last one month in the Galwan Valley region of Ladakh. This growing tension resulted in a confrontation on Monday (June 15) which led to casualties on both sides. While the exact number of casualties in the PLA are unknown, at least 20 casualties were inflicted on the Indian Army. This has been the biggest military confrontation between the two South Asian giants since 1975, when the last bullet was fired at the Indo-Sino border.

A recent study at US’ esteemed Harvard University has said that India has a conventional advantage over China to avoid any 1962 level setback in case the situation escalates between the two countries.

A research paper published by the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School earlier this year analyzed comparative data of the Indian and Chinese strategic capabilities.

The study notes that India’s conventional advantage remains ‘under-appreciated’ in Indian discourse.

The study took into account the nuclear capabilities of both countries, ground military forces of both countries and the two air forces which could be used at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) if things go south.

“We assess that India has key under-appreciated conventional advantages that reduce its vulnerability to Chinese threats and attacks. India appears to have cause for greater confidence in its military position against China than is typically acknowledged in Indian debates, providing the country an opportunity for leadership in international efforts toward nuclear transparency and restraint,” the report read.

The report further dwells into the conventional capabilities of the PLA and says that the apparent numerical near-equivalence with the Indian Army in the ground forces is ‘misleading’. ” Even in a war with India, a significant proportion of these forces will be unavailable, reserved either for Russian taskings or for countering insurrection in Xinjiang and Tibet. The majority of forces are located further from the Indian border, posing a striking contrast with the majority of forward-deployed Indian forces with a single China defense mission,” said the Harvard report.

PLA Air Force suffers from numerical disparity
“The PLA Air Force (PLAAF) also suffers from a numerical disparity to the IAF in the border region. Unlike the tripartite organizational division of Chinese ground forces facing India, the Western Theater Command has assumed control of all regional strike aircraft. A proportion of these are reserved for Russia-centric missions. By comparison, as noted earlier, the Indian Eastern Air Command can field around 101 fighters against China alone,” the report reads while comparing the two Air Forces.

On a strict comparison of available 4th generation fighters, authoritative assessments hold that China’s J-10 fighter is technically comparable to India’s Mirage-2000, and that the Indian Su-30MKI is superior to all theater Chinese fighters, including the additional J-11 and Su-27 models.27 China hosts a total of around 101 4th-generation fighters in the theater, of which a proportion must be retained for Russian defense, while India has around 122 of its comparable models, solely directed at China.

The Indian Air Force has already moved its frontline Sukhoi 30-MKI, Jaguar, Mirage 2000 aircraft and Apache attack helicopters to key air bases. Additional Indian Army troops are also being moved to forward locations.

Indian armed forces have deployed air defence systems in the Ladakh area amid escalating border tension with China. According to reports, defence forces have deployed surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems in eastern Ladakh to counter a potential aerial threat from the Chinese Air Force and possible violation of Indian air space.

New Delhi is building up military strength in the area after the violent face-off between Indian and Chinese soldiers in the Galwan valley on the night of June 15-16. Twenty Indian soldiers, including an officer, were killed in the clash. While the Chinese side is also believed to have had casualties, the number remains unclear.

India has already mobilised fighter jets and sent thousands of additional Army troops to forward locations along the border with China.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) has reportedly moved a sizeable number of its frontline Sukhoi 30-MKI, Jaguar, Mirage 2000 aircraft and Apache attack helicopters to several key airbases including Leh and Srinagar in the last five days.

According to another report in The Economic Times, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who is currently visiting Russia, is likely to push for faster delivery of the S-400 Triumf anti-missile system.

Russia is believed to have delayed delivery of the $5.4-billion system to December 2021 amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, the report adds.

Air Chief Marshal Bhadauria on June 20 said the IAF is “well prepared” and “suitably deployed” to counter any security challenge along the border with China and even hinted that his force has flown combat air patrols in the Ladakh region as part of heightened preparedness.

India and China are holding another round of Lt. General-level talks on June 22 to discuss ways to de-escalate tension between the two sides. The talks were scheduled to happen at Moldo on the Chinese side of the Chushul sector.

The Indian delegation at the talks is being led by 14 Corps Commander Lt Gen. Harinder Singh.

The first round of Lt Gen-level talks was held on June 6 during which both sides decided to “disengage” in all the sensitive areas.
India has the upper hand in military deployments along its border with China, says a recent Harvard University assessment. If the Chinese attacked, co-author Frank O’Donnell of the US Naval War College told HT, “due to the larger permanent military presence of Indian forces vis-a-vis Chinese forces along the border areas, India would eventually be able to force China back across the LAC, although casualties would be extremely high on both sides.” One unknown in such a conflict would be China’s ability to use cyberattacks to disable Indian communications and logistics. (Moneycontrol News and PTI)

India has deployed its specialised high altitude warfare forces along the 3,488 km Line of Actual Control (LAC) to repel any transgression by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in either western, middle or eastern sectors.

Top government sources confirmed that Indian Army has been directed to safeguard the LAC from any cross-border aggression by the PLA, which is showing hostile intent by amassing troops in a bid to cow down the Narendra Modi government.

It is understood that specialised forces trained over the past decades for fighting on the northern front have been pushed up to the frontier to impose military costs if the red flag goes up. Unlike the PLA which moves in infantry combat vehicles and paved metalled roads to move, the Indian mountain troops are trained in guerrilla warfare and fighting in high altitude as shown by them in Kargil War.

“The art of mountain fighting is the toughest as the cost of human casualties is 10 to each troop of the adversary sitting on a height. The troops from Uttarakhand, Ladakh, Gorkha, Arunachal and Sikkim have adapted to the rarefied heights over centuries and hence their capability of fighting is close quarter combats is without match. The artillery and the missiles have to have pin-pointed accuracy or else they miss the mountain target by miles,” said a former Indian Army chief.

The other thing that works for the army is that the Tibetan plateau is flat on the Chinese side while the Indian side starts from K2 peak in Karakoram, to Nanda Devi in Uttarakhand, to Kanchenjung in Sikkim and Namche Barwa across Arunachal Pradesh border. “In mountains, it is not only difficult to capture territory but more difficult to hold it,” a China expert with South Block said.

While India has noted with appreciation the voices coming out in its support from the Trump administration, including the President himself, the mood in Delhi is more like “atmanirbhar (self-reliant) Bharat” with no intent of asking anyone for military or diplomatic support. “I have my battalions lined up with armoured personnel carriers and artillery. India will not instigate or precipitate any skirmish but will reply to any transgression. The days of LAC nibbling are over. This is a battle of nerves and India is prepared to wait, come snow come sunshine,” said a senior minister.

The Modi government is very unhappy that the Chinese President Xi Jinping broke all the “peace and tranquility” promises by not reining his favourite PLA western theatre commander Gen Zhao Zongqi, who is insistent on imposing 1960 eastern Ladakh map based on exaggerated territorial claims on India. This map where China claims territory upto Kongka La was unveiled by then Chinese premier Chou En lai.

Incidentally, Chou En Lai, the premier during 1962 conflict, had close links with President Xi Jinping’s family and Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s wife is the daughter of secretary of the former premier. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar father K Subrahmanyam was involved in India’s war effort as an officer in the Defence Ministry.

It was only to set aside these historical baggage that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had initiated the Wuhan and Chennai understandings so that the two leaders could promote the bilateral relations post-Doklam. It is quite evident that President Xi had no such plans and has used tensions in East Ladakh to divert global attention from failure of China to alert the world about coronavirus. In the same way, another paramount leader used the 1962 conflict to deflect attention from the famine, due to failure of Great Leap Forward movement, in which millions of Chinese died. Ladakh face-off | Armed forces ‘given free hand’ to respond to situation at LAC The armed forces are said to have been given a free hand to assess the situation on the ground along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and take appropriate action as required in case of any escalation from the other side, a defence source on Sunday. This was conveyed during a meeting chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh with the Chief of Defence Staff and the three Service Chiefs.

“The situation along the LAC and preparedness of the armed forces was reviewed at the meeting. Forces have a free hand to assess the situation and to take action as required. While we don’t want escalation but if it happens by the other side, appropriate action will be taken. Clear cut instructions to this effect were given,” a defence source said on Sunday.
Courtesy: The Hindu