PLA Talks Peace After receiving yet Another Tight kick from Indian Army At Naku La
By
Colonel Awadhesh Kumar, Veteran, Special Forces
The latest face-off involving Chinese Communist Party troops at Naku La in Sikkim took place on 20th January. It seems PLA again tried to probe India’s defences but this time in the East amid the stalemate on the LAC in Ladakh sector, where the Chinese are still in occupation of Indian territory since 1962 or before. Around a year back On 10 Jan2020 PLA had tried a similar kind of probe in this Sector.
This fresh incident at Naku La, a pass located at a height of more than 5,000 metres in Sikkim sector came close on the heels of aggressive Chinese action related to Japan’s Senkaku Islands and a large incursion into Taiwan’s airspace by Chinese warplanes.
The local Sector Commander of the Indian Army at Naku La once again resolved the matte rafter delivering some suitable solid kicks on the PLA’s backside. PLA Soldiers sustained injuries in the brawl that was triggered when Chinese soldiers attempted to intrude into Indian territory. This attempt was made in spite of the ongoing Corps Commander level talks in Ladhak – Tibet Sector.
Now the Chinese have been clearly demonstrated that such “ misunderstanding and miscalculation” will not be tolerated and will be dealt firmly. The Chinese side appears to be expanding its efforts across the spectrum and looking for openings where it can “gain some strategic advantage”.
However a rattled Chinese foreign ministry declined to confirm or deny the latest clash between the border troops during the regular ministry briefing on Monday. “On the specific (incident) you mentioned, I don’t have any information to offer. I would like to stress though the Chinese border troops are committed to upholding peace and tranquillity along the border with India,” Zhao Lijian, ministry spokesperson, said.
“We urge the Indian side to work in the same direction with us and refrain from actions that might escalate or complicate the situation along the border. We hope both will take proper actions to manage the differences and take concrete actions to safeguard the peace and stability along the border,” he added.
In line with their psychological games, China passed a bill on January 22 that allows its coast guard to use weapons when foreign ships involved in alleged illegal activities in waters claimed by Beijing fail to obey orders. The legislation can be used to target Japanese vessels around the Senkaku Islands, which are administered by Japan but claimed by China.
Forget the US Navy or an Indian Naval Ship, lets see if the Chinese have the guts to open fire even on any of the Japanese Navy destroyers moving in the International waters claimed to be “ chinese territory.
On January 24, even Taiwan reported an unusually large incursion into its air defence identification zone by eight nuclear-capable Chinese bomber planes and four combats jets. China has conducted almost daily flights over waters between southern Taiwan and Taiwan-controlled islands in the Taiwan Strait in recent months but most of these involved reconnaissance aircraft.
US Defence Minister Lloyd Austin too reaffirmed his country’s commitment to defending the Senkaku Islands during his first phone call with his Japanese counterpart Nobuo Kishi. A US aircraft carrier group led by the USS Theodore Roosevelt is currently in the South China Sea to promote “freedom of the seas” amid the increasing incident between China and Taiwan.
So such actions by China across the Himalayas and onto the Indo Pacific will only help the QUAD turning into a Security Block.
It seems that the new PLA western theatre commander Zhang Xudong is trying to act as aggressive towards India as was the previous commander Zhao Zongqi. This instructions to put pressure on India must be coming from the Central Military Commission headed by Supreme Commander in Chief Xi Jinping.
In Ladhak Sector, the PLA has been checkmated thoroughly and the Indian Forces have an upper hand. So now PLA may try and build up pressure in Sikkim or Arunachal Pradesh, where they are likely to be surprised once again.
Xi Saheb apart from testing Modi’s WILL post Wuhan epidemic is also trying to test Joe Biden’s Indo-Pacific policy.
All this may back fire for China, as India may no longer remain in a defensive mode only. In case PLA continues with such proving tactics, then India too has the option to back The Tibet Government in Exile. Naming the successor to the 14th Dalai Lama may be carried out at Dharmashala sooner than later.
By trying to continue to project dominance in 2021—the 100th year of Chinese Communist Party, the PLA may only be starting the End of Chinese occupation of Tibet, Xinjiang and parts of Indian Union Territory of Ladhak.
