|
Arunachal : No increase in Chinese incursions - Army Chief |
 |
Army Chief Deepak Kapoor has said that there has been no increase in Chinese incursions and India would be “as much blameworthy” of incursions due to differences in perceptions on what constituted the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
Participating in a television programme - Devil’s Advocate - on CNN-IBN, the Army chief said : “I think a degree of misper¬ception has been built on this issue of incursions... first and foremost, it is a matter of perception. The Chinese have a dif¬ferent perception of the LAC as do we. When they come up to their perception, we call it an incursion and likewise they do”. He said the level of total number of incursions in 2007 is “somewhat similar to what it has been in the past. So, the feeling that too many incursions have taken place into Indian territory is not right.”
The Army chief said he did not feel that the “string of pearls” of military installations being built by China from Myanmar in the east to Seychelles on the west are a threat to India.
Asked whether Indian troops also infiltrate into Chinese territory as often because of differences of perception about the LAC, the Army chief replied: “that’s right... which they would call an incursion into their side. So, therefore, to that extent, we would be as much blameworthy for that kind of incursion up to our perceived LAC.” Gen. Kapoor dismissed the media perception that Chinese incursions were a sign of muscle-flexing by Beijing indicating something worse to come.
|
