The death of 20 Indian soldiers at the hands of Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley in Ladakh on the night of June 15-16 is the most serious national security crisis the country has faced since the Kargil War in 1999.
Not only has the incident dealt a body blow to a carefully-crafted bilateral relationship that moved on in other areas such as trade and business while managing boundary differences, it will also have a bearing on strategic choices India will have to make in the days ahead.
From early reports, it would appear that the Chinese side is downplaying any dead or wounded that it might have suffered in the worst boundary clashes since 1967 – the country’s system allows it do so – India’s doesn’t.
In an editorial, the State-controlled Global Times wrote that China, by not giving out the number of their dead and wounded, intended to “avoid comparing and preventing confrontational sentiments from escalating”.
It would indicate the Chinese might believe that they have come up on top in this round but probably underestimate the hard strategic choices that India will have to make in the days, weeks, months and years ahead.
While a clear strategic direction from the top leadership in India has to come, the fact is that the Army has to and must retain the positions India has held alon