5 Officers, Soldiers Killed In Galwan Valley Clash With India, Admits China

Beijing: China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has admitted officially that five Chinese soldiers died in the clash with Indian soldiers in the Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh last year.

Central Military Commission of China (CMC) honoured the five officers and soldiers, the PLA Daily, Chinese Military’s official newspaper reported on Friday.

According to China’s state-run Global Times, the regimental commander from the PLA Xinjiang Military Command, Qi Fabao was among the dead. The PLA leadership headed by President Xi Jinping honoured Qi Fabao and others who died — Chen Hongjun, Chen Xiangrong, Xiao Siyuan and Wang Zhuoran.

With India saying that at least 30 Chinese soldiers lost lives during the clash, Beijing has never acknowledged the fact. TASS, the Russian official news agency, had reported a few days ago that 45 Chinese soldiers were killed in the clash.

The Galwan Valley violence claimed the lives of 20 Indian soldiers on June 15. This is considered the worst cross-border violence between the warring neighbours in more than four decades.