As Ladakh Standoff continues since June 2020, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) has deployed an advanced long-range rocket launcher to the Himalayas, in a move aimed at reinforcing China's border defense and acting as a deterrent to India, according to PLA Daily.
It is the first time that the PLA has confirmed the deployment of long-range rocket systems to the border with India, after the neighbors last week failed to reach agreement in their latest round of corps commander-level talks over full disengagement along the disputed frontier, the South China Morning Post (SCMP)reported.
An artillery brigade stationed 5,200 metres (17,000 feet) above sea level in Xinjiang military district has intensified its drills using a rocket system during full-wing combat-ready training, a report on the front page of PLA Daily said on Monday.
Military
commentator Song Zhongping, a former instructor in the PLA's Artillery Corps,
the predecessor of Rocket Force, told the SCMP that the new weapon system should
be a long-range rocket launcher that can carry multiple 300mm [12-inch] or even
bigger rockets with more than 100km of firing range.
"Only a long-range MLRS is powerful enough to act as a deterrent to India, as the Indian troops are also stepping up military deployment along the borders," he was quoted as saying.
Macau-based military observer Antony Wong Tong said the long-range multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) mentioned by PLA Daily was likely to be the most advanced PHL-16, or the Type PCL-191 which debuted in the National Day Parade in 2019.
The PLA Daily report comes at a time when China changed its stand on further disengagement during the 11th Corps Commander level talks, the Indian newspaper The Print said
After the surprise breakthrough in February that saw both sides pulling troops and equipment back from the brink in Pangong Tso (lake), China now wants the two armies to de-escalate or withdraw additional troops brought in as back-up to those in the front, the Print said adding:
India, however, is insisting on disengagement from the remaining friction areas along the disputed Himalayan frontier first.
India's shadow looms over revived China-Bhutan border talks
China and Bhutan agreed to resume long-delayed talks on their disputed boundary amid the ongoing border row between Beijing and New Delhi, but analysts say a breakthrough is unlikely, given Indian influence over Bhutan, South China Morning News reported on April 17.
During a four-day meeting of experts between China and Bhutan last week in the southern Chinese city of Kunming, the two sides talked about a "road map to expedite" boundary talks and to hold the 25th round of discussions on the issue "as soon as possible", according to a joint release.
There is no confirmed date yet for the boundary talks between China and Bhutan, but it will be the first meeting on the issue between the countries - which do not have formal diplomatic relations.
It will also be the first since the months-long border stand-off in 2017 between China and India, after Bhutan protested against China's construction of a road in the Doklam area at the tri-junction of Bhutan, India and the politically sensitive Chinese region of Tibet.
Analysts said the boundary talks were unlikely to achieve significant progress in resolving the dispute between China and Bhutan, which has been running since 1984.
A key reason is India, which has historically close ties and considerable influence over Bhutan and was reportedly behind its refusal to accept a 1996 proposal from China that would have recognized Bhutanese sovereignty over central disputed areas, in exchange for Chinese sovereignty over the disputed area in the west, including Doklam.
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
