A Chinese army soldier was captured in Ladakh on Monday after he had strayed across the Line of Actual Control. The Chinese soldier has been recognised as Corporal Wang Ya Long by the Indian Army and is presently in the custody of the Indian Army and will be returned to Chinese officials at the Chushul-Moldo meeting point after fulfillment of formalities.
The Chinese soldier has been offered medical aid, including oxygen. He was also given food and warm clothes for safeguard against the difficulties of extreme altitude and harsh climatic conditions. A request had been received from the Chinese military seeking information about the whereabouts of the soldier.
The sources said that the soldier might have entered the Indian territory “inadvertently”. “As per established protocols, he will be returned to Chinese officials at the Chushul-Moldo meeting point after the completion of modalities,” the statement said.
“Based on what I know, one Chinese soldier was detained by the Indian side, very likely because of getting lost. The Indian side has a positive attitude. The soldier will be returned to China. The issue should not cause new tensions in the border area,” Hu Xijin, editor-in-chief of China’s state-backed Global Times said in a Twitter post.
Tensions between India and China have been running high since May when India witnessed multiple intrusions into Indian territory by the Chinese. Tensions boiled over into a fierce clash on June 15 with 20 Indian soldiers and an unrevealed number of Chinese troops killed.
Many rounds of talks at the military and diplomatic level have failed to ensure a lessening of the strains – seen at levels that can be described as unprecedented in decades.
The earlier meeting of the military commanders from both sides to resolves the six-month stand-off was conducted on October 12 but concluded without any solution of the dispute.