United States expresses concern over India-China border tensions

“In nearby locations, there are also four to five landing strips”.

But the reports didn’t state whether the movement was to support the drills being held in certain areas of Tibet, close to Arunachal.

“Jaishankar told us that China’s aggression and rhetoric on the recent standoff is unusual”, a member of the parliamentary panel at Tuesday’s briefing told Indian media. In the past, the Chinese have built temporary roads in the area. This stretch of land has remained tense since the 1960s with occasional skirmishes reported on both sides.

The editorial goes on to add that India should prepare for “all-out confrontation” if a conflict is triggered. “But these can not support landing because of logistical issues”, said an official.

“India is vulnerable in that area and that is why China wants to increase their presence in that particular area”, said Sameet Patil, an analyst with a Mumbai-based think-tank. In 1962, the two countries engaged in a bloody border war and skirmishes have continued to break out sporadically in the decades since. On China’s One Belt One Road (OBOR) project, Sushma Swaraj said India has been opposing this project right from the beginning of it.

Wang Dehua, a South Asia strategic expert, told the paper that “military operations are all about logistics” and at present “there is much better logistics support to the Tibet region”.

China claimed that it was constructing the road within its territory, and has been demanding immediate pull-out of the Indian troops from the Dokalam plateau. China’s efforts to unilaterally change the status quo at the tri-junction poses a diresct threat to the security of India.

Bhutan has said construction of the road is “a direct violation” of agreements with China. Indian and Bhutan say it belongs to Bhutan. Bhutan and China do not have diplomatic relations. The opposition parties have said they would back the government’s approach to resolve the situation.

The Ministry of External Affairs today held a press briefing that primarily focused on the Doklam standoff, where for almost four weeks now Indian and Chinese soldiers have been engaged in an eyeball-to-eyeball, but peaceful confrontation.

Despite not being an ally to any super power, the confidence that the external affairs minister showed on Thursday compels one to think whether Narendra Modi’s diplomatic initiatives on the world stage, soon after he became the prime minister, are beginning to pay off.

“All military forces must be prepared for a range of contingencies and we are seeing that, but there is also a good deal of alarmism”.