TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — China’s PLA has sent long-range bombers within striking distance of India as the two countries hold virtual talks aimed at settling their border dispute.
The aircraft, which were previously stationed near Beijing, have been deployed to the PLA’s Western Theater Command in what analysts view as a show of force, according to the South China Morning Post. “It’s very easy for the PLA to fly H-6Ks to the China-India border because the aircraft are stationed ... under the Western Theater Command,” an anonymous military source told the Post.
In response, India’s air force has moved Mig-29UPG and Su-30MKI fighter jets to air bases in three areas hotly contested by both Delhi and Beijing — Sikkim, Ladakh, and Arunachal Pradesh. Meanwhile, representatives of the countries are meeting virtually on Thursday (Nov. 18) to continue the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC), a group tasked with finding solutions to the border standoff, according to a Times Now report.
The meeting comes after talks between the Chinese and Indian militaries failed to reach a consensus on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) last month.
Despite floating forward-looking proposals, neither side agreed to any tangible plan for de-escalation. Instead, they have been beefing up military forces in border areas.
In a sign that China does not expect a resolution in the foreseeable future, the PLA has begun building heated accommodations for its soldiers stationed at the LAC, per Times Now.
