NEW DELHI (AP) – The Indian army said on Saturday it had arrested a Chinese soldier in the remote Ladakh region, where the two countries are in a month-long military stalemate along their disputed mountainous border.
An army statement said the Chinese soldier was arrested on Friday for transgressing to the Indian side in the area south of Lake Pangong Tso.
“The PLA (People’s Liberation Army) soldier is being treated according to established procedures and the circumstances under which he crossed the LAC (Royal Control Line) are being investigated,” the statement said.
China said it informed the Indian side as soon as one of its soldiers disappeared “due to the darkness and the complicated terrain.”
Later, the Indian side confirmed that it had found the missing soldier and said it would take him back to the Chinese side, China’s Defense Ministry said in a statement.
“The Indian side must strictly comply with the relevant agreements between the two countries and deliver the lost personnel to the Chinese side as soon as possible, to add positive factors to cool the situation on the China-India border and, together, to maintain peace and peace. calm in the border area, ”said the statement.
Indian and Chinese soldiers are often lost in the disputed Himalayan region.
In October, India detained another Chinese soldier in the Demchok area of Ladakh, but he was released after it was discovered that he actually crossed the border.
In September, China released five Indian citizens who disappeared from the eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh amid latent tensions between the two countries. The five men were hunters of Indians.
The high-altitude stalemate between the Asian giants started in early May with a fierce fight and exploded in a melee fight with clubs, stones and fists on June 15 that left 20 Indian soldiers dead. China is believed to have also suffered casualties, but gave no details.