Beijing, September 8: Signalling a further escalation in the ongoing border row, China has now accused the Indian Army of trespassing the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh. The country, in a statement issued in the wee hours of Tuesday, accused the Indian soldiers of crossing the de-facto border in Shenpao Mountain and "firing warning shots". Arunachal Pradesh Youths, Who Were Allegedly Abducted by China’s PLA, Still Missing; Probe Underway, Says Police.

A statement issued by the Western Theater of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) claimed that China resorted to "countermeasures" after the alleged aggression of the Indian forces. The Chinese side alleged that the warning shots were fired by the Indian soldiers after their PLA counterparts "were about to negotiate". Chinese Propaganda? Pangong Tso Lake to Start Getting International Tourists, Claims Ad Video Shared by Unverified Twitter Users.

"The Indian army again illegally crossed the Line of Actual Control in Shenpao mountain near the south bank of Pangong Tso Lake on Monday," PLA Western Theater Command spokesperson was reported as saying by the state-run Global Times.

"Chinese border defense troops were forced to take countermeasures to stabilize the situation after the Indian troops outrageously fired warning shots to PLA border patrol soldiers who were about to negotiate," the spokesperson further added.

See Global Times' Tweet

Statement Issued by Chinese Defence Ministry

India and China are locked in a border face-off since the onset of May, after the Chinese side reportedly attempted to unilaterally change the status quo. The tensions flared up in mid-June, after a physical clash between the two sides led to the death of 20 Indian soldiers in Galwan Valley. The fatal clash had erupted in the intervening night of June 15-16. Casualties were also incurred by the PLA but the details were withheld by Beijing.

While headways were made in the disengagement process following the Galwan clash, the situation escalated again in August after the Chinese side refrained from completely retreating from the contested area in Pangong Tso and returning to the positions which either sides held as of April this year.

On August 29, a major incursion bid of the PLA was thwarted by India in the Pangong Tso region. This was followed by a dialogue between the Defence Ministers of both the countries in Russia, where they had convened for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit over the past weekend. Both sides, in the statement issued following the meeting, had put the onus on each for resolving the row while reiterating that dialogue should be the way forward.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 08, 2020 12:44 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).