Thousands of Chinese Airbornes Train at High Altitude Amid Border Stand-Off With India

Chinese newspaper Global Times released a video on Sunday showing thousands of paratropers from the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force airborne brigade maneuvering from central China’s Hubei Province to a northwestern, high-altitude region, for large-scale drills. took just a few hours to maneuver from Central China’s Hubei Province to northwestern, high-altitude region amid China-India border tensions. ​The video comes a day after the Indian Ministry of External Affairs said that India and China had agreed during bilateral talks between army commanders to peacefully settle tensions along the Line of Actual Control.

Tensions over the disputed border worsened in early May after violent face-offs in the Himalayas, which left dozens of soldiers on both sides injured. Following the clashes, Indian media reported that New Delhi and Beijing had deployed additional troops to the border area in Ladakh, a region administered by India. But following that incident, roughly 250 Indian and Chinese troops engaged in clashes on the northern bank of Pangong Lake in Ladakh, an area that has been disputed by Pakistan, India and China for decades. Soldiers on both sides suffered injuries, and clashes have continued since then.

New Delhi and Beijing are engaged in a month-long stand off at the loosely demarcated Line of Actual Control, created after the 1962 war between the two the Asian giants. The countries have resorted to diplomatic channels but have so far failed to resolve the border issue. Since the Indian and China do not have a marked border, there have been a number of skirmishes between the two sides over the decades. China’s Foreign Ministry has stressed at the recent regular press briefings that the situation on the China-India border is stable and controllable, and diplomatic and military channels of communication between the two sides are unimpeded.

The People’s Liberation Army Air Force Airborne Corps is a corps directly under the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) headquarters.The PLAAF Airborne Corps’ weapons inventory includes ZBD-03 derivatives and 2S9 self-propelled mortars, large numbers of BJ212 jeeps with 105mm recoilless rifles or HJ-11 ATGM, and Type 89 120 mm SP anti-tank guns. The last two weapon platforms are air transportable. The last two weapon platforms are air transportable. There will also be more heavier armored units making use of recently inducted Type-15 light tanks, PCL-181 wheeled vehicle-mounted 155mm howitzers and new generation airborne armored vehicles in future deployments.