China tries to pacify families of soldiers killed in Ladakh

New Delhi/Beijing: China on Wednesday attempted to pacify the aggrieved families of the Chinese soldiers who were killed in clashes with Indian troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh's Galwan valley, without any official recognition from Beijing.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) regime's mouthpiece, The Global Times, written by its editor Hu Xijn claimed that "the dead have been treated with the highest respect in the military, and that the information will eventually be reported to society at the right time, so that heroes can be honored and remembered as they deserve."

The editorial came two days after a video emerged from China showing that the families of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) personnel were outraged by the fact that unlike Indian soldiers, their martyrs had received no honor and no acknowledgment. The video went viral on social media. Though the Global Times has admitted that "less than 20" PLA soldiers were killed in the violent face-off in Ladakh, the Xi Jinping government has remained tight-lipped about them.Paying "high tribute to the PLA officers and soldiers", Hu wrote, "China's security and the tranquility of China's borders depend upon them. Thus far, the Chinese military has not released any information about the deceased. As both a former soldier and current media professional, I understand that this is an expedient move with the aim of not irritating public opinion in the two countries, especially in India. This is Beijing's goodwill."

Lamenting that the Indian media claimed that at least 40 Chinese soldiers were killed, and India has handed over the bodies of 16 Chinese soldiers, the Global Times editor in his long piece called them "unchallenged rumors".

China on Thursday once again claimed the violent face-off along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh was caused by India's "betrayal of consensuses and unilateral provocations" and that it "took place on the Chinese side".