US calls China's build-up near Ladakh alarming: What is happening?

A top US General has raised concerns over the defence infrastructure being built by China along its border with India in Ladakh, and has called the situation 'alarming'.

US Army's Pacific Commanding General Charles A Flynn said the Chinese activity in the region is “eye-opening”.

Flynn, who is on a visit to India, also said the “destabilising and corrosive” behaviour of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the Indo-Pacific region is not helpful.

WHAT IS CHINA BUILDING?

The Chinese construction that Flynn was referring to came to the notice last month when a second bridge in the strategically important Pangong Tso area. This bridge could help its military to quickly mobilise its troops in the region.

Other Chinese infrastructure, such as roads and residential units, has also come up along the border with India. China is also involved in major maritime border disputes with various countries in the Indo-Pacific region, such as Vietnam and Japan, reported PTI.

INDIA-CHINA BORDER SKIRMISHES

India and China have long disputed their 3,500-km-long border and also fought a war in Arunachal Pradesh in 1962. In 2020, a hand-to-hand combat between troops in Ladakh's Galwan Valley saw casualties on both sides.

India and China have held 15 rounds of military talks so far to resolve the Ladakh standoff. However, each side currently has around 50,000 to 60,000 troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the sensitive sector, reported PTI.

Chinese state-sponsored hackers have also targeted India's electricity distribution centres near Ladakh in recent months, a report by a private threat intelligence firm Recorded Future said.

INDIA-US JOINT MILITARY EXERCISE

The US General said the armies of India and the US did a joint military exercise in Alaska last. He added that such exercises increase readiness to respond to any crisis and has a deterrent effect in the region, reported PTI.

“I am really excited about the future of ‘yudhabhyas’ (combat exercise) this year in India where General Pande and Lieutenant General Raju have agreed to do the exercise at 9,000-10,000 feet above sea level,” Flynn said.

An exercise at such a high altitude increases the readiness, joint interoperability and coalition interoperability of the armies of both the countries, he said.