Border accusation against Chinese soldiers fabricated, says official

Recent reports in Indian media that Chinese soldiers had been detained for "crossing the border "are purely fabricated, a Chinese military source said on Saturday.

The source said that Chinese border troops conducted a routine patrol on Sept 28 in the Dongzhang area on the Chinese side of the Sino-Indian border and encountered "unreasonable obstruction" from the Indian military. The Chinese officers and soldiers took resolute countermeasures and returned after the patrol was completed.

The source said the Dongzhang area is China's inherent territory and it is entirely reasonable and legal for Chinese border troops to organize patrols on their own territory. That Chinese soldiers were being detained was entirely fabricated and hyped by Indian media.

The incident is a deliberate provocation and a distortion and smear campaign by the Indian side, which is a serious violation of the bilateral agreement. "The responsibility rests entirely with the Indian side," the source said.

The Indian side should earnestly comply with bilateral agreements, strictly control and restrain its front-line troops, and work with the Chinese military to maintain peace and stability in the border area, the source added.

Chinese and Indian troops clashed in June last year in the Galwan Valley, and China has condemned the Indian side for serious violations of bilateral pacts between the two militaries.

The two countries have signed various bilateral agreements since the 1962 Sino-Indian war to prevent the situation from escalating. The most recent agreements include the Establishment of a Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on China-India Border Affairs, signed in 2012, and the Border Defense Cooperation Agreement between India and China, signed in 2013.

The two countries have also held several talks at the corps-commander level since last year. The 12th meeting was held in August on the Indian side, following the meeting of the two foreign ministers in July and 22nd meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs in June.

According to the Ministry of National Defense statement, at the 12th corps-commander level meeting, the two sides had a "candid and in-depth exchange of views on resolution of remaining areas related to disengagement along the Line of Actual Control in the Western Sector of India-China border areas".

It said the two sides also agreed to continue effective efforts in ensuring stability along the LAC in the Western Sector and jointly maintain peace and tranquility.