China repeats demand for remaining 53 Indian troops to leave its territory in disputed region
Any number of troops on Chinese land is a ‘serious invasion’, foreign ministry says in a statement
China’s foreign ministry has reiterated its demand for all Indian troops to withdraw from a disputed border region in the Himalayas, according to an official news website.
“According to our knowledge, there are still 53 people and one bulldozer illegally remaining on Chinese land as of August 7,” it said in a statement published on Wednesday on haiwainet.cn, which is affiliated to People’s Daily.
“China would like to emphasise that India must withdraw all its personnel and arms to the Indian side of the border. Any number of Indian troops remaining on Chinese land is a serious invasion of the Chinese territory,” it said.
The number is a slight increase from the end of last month when 40 Indian troops were reported to be in Chinese territory near the conflict site on the Doklam plateau. At the peak of the dispute there were a reported 400 Indian troops deployed in the area.
