BEIJING: The Chinese military has carried out an exercise on the Tibet plateau, deploying tanks and conducting live firing at a height of 5,100 metres for the first time, amid the standoff with Indian forces near Nathu La in Sikkim sector that has taken bilateral ties to a new low.
At the same time, China’s official media, in a brazen editorial, called for Sikkim’s “independence” and separation from India, suggesting Beijing rally the world for the abolition of unfair treaties on sovereignty and defence that New Delhi has allegedly forced Bhutan to sign.
The military drill, which involved the testing of new equipment, was conducted to evaluate the battle-readiness of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) troops at altitudes of 15,000 feet and above, official Xinhua news agency reported.
The exercise assessed “battlefield environment analysis, combat operations, synergies that need to be developed during battle”, and also featured live fire shooting training and the testing of integration of military operations, the report in Chinese said.
The report said the hierarchy of the PLA, the world’s largest armed forces, wanted to test how personnel and equipment fared in freezing altitudes and “complex weather patterns”.
Meanwhile, the editorial in Global Times — affiliated to the Communist Party of China mouthpiece, the People’s Daily — suggested Beijing take a fresh look at Sikkim’s merger with India. The editorial said Beijing “should reconsider its stance over the Sikkim issue” even though China “recognised India’s annexation of Sikkim in 2003”.
The editorial suggested China could “readjust its stance on the matter”. “There are those in Sikkim that cherish its history as a separate state, and they are sensitive to how the outside world views the Sikkim issue. As long as there are voices in Chinese society supporting Sikkim’s independence, the voices will spread and fuel pro-independence appeals in Sikkim,” it said.
“With certain conditions, Bhutan and Sikkim will see strong anti-India movements, which will negatively affect India’s already turbulent northeast area,” the newspaper wrote.
The newspaper’s call for Sikkim’s independence and incite trouble in the northeastern states seems to match with what Indian agencies have claimed that Beijing encourages insurgent groups to spread unrest.