One year after the China-India border skirmish in the Galwan Valley, Senior Colonel ZHOU Bo (ret) gave an interview to the BBC to explain China’s position. Colonel Zhou is an Adjunct Senior Fellow at the Center for International Security and Strategy, Tsinghua University, a China Forum Expert and former Director of the Centre for Security Cooperation at the Office for International Military Cooperation, Ministry of National Defense.
“From the Chinese point of view, Indian soldiers have been building roads and other infrastructure in Ladakh’s Galwan Valley, which according to China falls under its territory,” Colonel Zhou said in the interview.
“From the Chinese side we insist on the traditional customary line as China-India border while India insists on the Line of Actual Control before the war in 1962,” he told the BBC. “But there is a fundamental difference over where the Line of Actual Control lies.”
Asked about the impact of the Galwan Valley clash on China-India ties, Colonel Zhou said that it is not a watershed moment in the bilateral relationship, but it should be a turning point for both sides to think how we can really enhance confidence building measures.
Related Background:
On June 15, 2020, fierce physical confrontations broke out between Indian and Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley on the border of the two country.
On June 16, 2020, the Chinese military confirmed casualties in the border clash.
On February 19, 2021, according to a CCTV military report, regimental commander QI Fabao sustained a serious injury during the negotiation and ensuing clash; battalion commander CHEN Hongjun and three soldiers, including CHEN Xiangrong, XIAO Siyuan, and WANG Zhuoran, sacrificed their lives heroically. The Indian military previously said that the conflict resulted in the death of 20 Indian soldiers.
In February 2021, India and China completed the disengagement of frontline troops from the Pangong Lake area, a significant step forward in easing tensions on the ground.
This interview was broadcast on BBC World News on May 31.