New Delhi/Beijing, September 2: China on Wednesday said held India responsible for ongoing tensions along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) between the two countries. Accusing India of changing the status quo at Pangong Tso, China said: "Indian side should stop actions leading to escalation and complication". The remarks from Beijing came after Indian and Chinese troops were engaged in a brief skirmish at the southern bank of the Pangong Lake in eastern Ladakh. China Shouldn't Forget That It's 2020, Not 1962, Says BJD MP Prasanna Acharya.

Asked about the current situation at Pangong Tso, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said: "You just said that the Indian side pre-empted China’s action. In China, we have a saying about a guilty mind protesting conspicuously he’s innocent. That is what India did. It shows that the Indian troops illegally crossed the line in provocation and unilaterally changed the status quo and broke the two sides' agreement and consensus." China's Latest Incursion Attempt Was Deliberate to Provoke India: US Intelligence.

On the intervening night of August 29 and 30, PLA troops had violated the previous consensus agreed in military and diplomatic engagements during the ongoing standoff in eastern Ladakh and carried out provocative military movements to change the status quo. "Indian troops pre-empted this PLA activity on the southern bank of Pangong lake, and undertook measures to strengthen our positions and thwart Chinese intentions to unilaterally change facts on the ground," the Indian Army said.

However, China on Monday said its troops never crossed the Line of Actual Control. Asserting that “the responsibility lies entirely with the Indian side” for the continuing tensions between India and China, Hua said: "From the beginning of this year, the Indian Army repeatedly broke consensus and agreements and unilaterally with force changed the status quo, destabilising the border region and causing tensions."

"China has exercised great restraint to avoid escalation. Communicating through diplomatic and military channels, China urged the Indian side to discipline frontline troops, stop provocation, pull back illegal trespassers and stop actions leading to escalation and complication. We hope India will work together with China for the same goal, implement the leaders consensus and the two sides agreements and work with concrete actions to contribute to peace and tranquillity along the border," she added.

On June 15, as many as 20 Indian soldiers and an unknown number of Chinese troops were killed in a violent clash in the Galwan Valley. Chinese aggression started increasing along the Line of Actual Control and more particularly in Galwan Valley since May 5. The Chinese side has reportedly transgressed in the areas of Kugrang Nala, Gogra and north bank of Pangong lake on May 17 and May 18.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 02, 2020 08:49 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).