India-China standoff: Indian Army foils China's intrusion bid in Sikkim

Indian and Chinese troops clashed once again last week in Naku la in north Sikkim in the eastern Himalayas. The clash was largely hand-to-hand and no shots were fired.

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The skirmish led to several injures on both sides. The Indian Army has said it was a "minor face-off" which had taken place on January 20.

"There was a minor face-off at Naku la area of north Sikkim on January 20, 2021. The same was resolved by local commanders as per established protocols," the Indian Army said in a statement.

The latest clash occurred when the Chinese side attempted to intrude into Indian territory and the Indian army responded with some reinforcements.

The latest clash at Naku la comes even as Indian and Chinese troops were already engaged in a border standoff in eastern Ladakh after the ninth round of commander-level talks between India and China which lasted for nearly 16 hours and concluded at around 2:30am(IST) on Sunday.

The border tensions began simmering between the two neighbours in May last year and on June 15 last year, an extended skirmish took place at Galwan Valley which led to casualties for both sides for the first time in 45 years. Twenty Indian soldiers had died in the incident with an undisclosed number of Chinese casualties.

Both sides have deployed thousands of troops along the Line of Actual Control(LAC) especially along the three friction points in the eastern Ladakh region.

China remains aggressive not only with India but with other neighbours from Taiwan to Japan and also Australia.