Not 4, But 42 Chinese Soldiers Died in 2020 Galwan Clash, Claims Report | Key Points

Galwan Clash: Last year in February, Russian news agency TASS had claimed that 45 Chinese soldiers were killed in the clashes at the Galwan Valley.

New Delhi: Contrary to Beijing’s claims, an investigative Australian newspaper ‘The Klaxon’, has revealed that China has lost 42 soldiers in Galwan Valley clash in June 2020, with many jawans drowning while crossing a fast-flowing river in darkness. While India had accepted that 20 of its soldiers sacrificed their lives in the fierce hand-to-hand combat on June 15, 2020, in Galwan Valley, an incident that marked the most serious military conflicts between the two sides in over four decades, China, a year later in 2021, acknowledged that four Chinese military officers and soldiers—Chen Hongjun, 33, Xiao Siyuan, 24, Wang Zhuoran, 24 and Chen Xiangrong, 18  were killed in the clashes though it was widely believed that the death toll was higher. Their commanding officer Qi Fabao, 41, was badly wounded. Last year in February, Russian news agency TASS had claimed that 45 Chinese soldiers were killed in the clashes at the Galwan Valley.

Galwan Clash: Klaxon Key Findings

• The Klaxon cited findings by unnamed researchers and mainland Chinese bloggers in the report and said they have declined to be named on security grounds, but their findings appear to “shed significant light on the saga”.
• Claims of substantial Chinese casualties are not new, however evidence provided by a group of social media researchers, which The Klaxon has independently built on, appears to support claims that China’s casualties extended well beyond the four soldiers named by Beijing,” it said.
• The report said it also showed the extreme lengths Beijing has gone to silence discussion about the battle.
• “China’s losses in the high-altitude 2020 Galwan Valley border clash with India — the deadliest confrontation between the two giants– were much higher than reported with many soldiers drowning while crossing a fast-flowing, sub-zero river in darkness, new research claims,” the report said.
• The Klaxon cited a report into the matter titled “Galwan Decoded” that it said has been prepared by a group of social media researchers.
• “The researchers have declined to be named on security grounds, but their findings appear to shed significant light on the saga,” it added.
• The Klaxon said the report cited a year-long investigation involving discussions with mainland Chinese bloggers, information obtained from mainland-based Chinese citizens and media reports that have since been deleted by Chinese authorities.
• “A lot of facts about what really happened, what led to the skirmish, have been hidden by Beijing,” it quoted from the report.

Ladakh Standoff

The border standoff in eastern Ladakh erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong lake area and both sides gradually enhanced their deployment by rushing in tens of thousands of soldiers as well as heavy weaponry. As a result of a series of military and diplomatic talks, the two sides completed the disengagement process in Gogra as well as in the north and south banks of the Pangong lake last year. Each side currently has around 50,000 to 60,000 troops along the Line of Actual Control in the sensitive sector.