China has for the first time officially acknowledged casualties in Galwan Valley clash which took place in June 2020 and shared details of four soldiers of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who lost their lives.
This comes nine months after China refused to disclose details of casualties in the bloodied fight with India.
China’s Central Military Commission recognized five Chinese frontier officers and soldiers stationed in the Karakorum Mountains “for their sacrifice in the border confrontation with India”, according to a report by Global Times.
As per the report, regimental commander of PLA’s Xinjiang Military Command was killed in the clash.
“Chen Hongjun, Chen Xiangrong, Xiao Siyuan and Wang Zhuoran died a fierce struggle” against “foreign troops” that violated an agreement and crossed into the Chinese side, Reuters reported citing Chinese media reports. Chen was posthumously awarded the title of “Guardian of the Frontier Hero,” while the other three men were also given first-class merit citations, Reuters report added.
The border row between India and China erupted in May last year and the stand-off escalated on June 15, when troops from the two sides clashed in Galwan Valley near Patrol Point 14.
