China-India border dispute: PLA bombers pictured close to troubled region
- Images released by Central Theatre Command show at least three Xian H-6 bombers at base thought to be in Tibet
- Western Theatre Command says its troops took part in a live-fire air-defence exercise in a ‘northwestern desert’, believed to be in Xinjiang
In photographs published on Tuesday on an official social media account of the People’s Liberation Army’s Central Theatre Command, at least three Xian H-6 bombers and a Xian Y-20 airlifter were shown at an airfield thought to be in the Tibet autonomous region.
The captions accompanying the images on Weibo – China’s Twitter-like platform – said ground crews had been stationed at a “high-altitude” base on a “plateau” – a description normally associated with Tibet.
They had been tasked with maintaining and refuelling the aircraft, the captions said.
Among the aircraft that can be identified from the images are H-6H bombers, which have a combat range of 2,500km (1,550 miles) and can carry heavy air-to-ground or anti-ship cruise missiles.
The release of the statement and images comes after the border conflict between China and India escalated on Monday, with the two sides each accusing the other of opening fire close to the southern bank of Pangong Lake in a violation of a no-fire agreement signed in 1996.
The social media announcement that troops from the Central Theatre Command, which has its headquarters in Beijing, had been deployed to a region under the control of the by Western Theatre Command piqued people’s interest on social media.
Although it oversees several inland provinces, the main function of the Central Theatre Command is to serve as China’s primary defender and provide strategic reserve forces to other commands. However, other units from the Central Theatre Command, including a paratrooper brigade based in Wuhan, Hubei province, have been deployed to the border region since June.
China and India have been locked in a border dispute since May. In June, at least 20 Indian soldiers were killed in clashes between the two sides. China did not acknowledge losing any of its troops in the skirmishes.
Both countries have sent reinforcements to the area despite agreeing to disengage from the front line.
The PLA has increased its live-fire exercises in Tibet and Xinjiang in recent months and publicised them.
China’s H-6 bomber series is based on the former Soviet Union’s twin-engined strategic bomber Tu-16, which was built in the 1950s. The latest version – the H6-N – made its first public appearance at China’s National Day parade in October last year.
