Galwan clash was pre-meditated by Chinese says US intel

New Delhi, June 24: Further signalling that the Galwan Valley clash was not spontaneous but pre-planned, a new outlet in the US said that it was PLA officer, General Zhao Zongqi who was behind the incident.

In the violent clash at Galwan Valley on June 15, 20 Indian soldiers were martyred and around 35 Chinese soldiers were either killed or injured. The US News citing US intelligence said that the assessment does not see the incident as a spontaneous one.

The report said that the assessment sees the Ladakh intrusions and Galwan being driven by a desire to signal that China is not vulnerable to opportunistic pressure tactics by India in the post COVID-19 situation.

It may be recalled that the same news agency had reported that the PLA had sustained significant casualties in the Galwan clash. If the idea by the Chinese was to remind India of its frailty then it may have backfired, the report said.