US says it's closely monitoring India-China border row, urges peace

The United States on Tuesday said it is "closely monitoring" the situation between India and China after a violent face-off between troops of the two countries at the Line of Actual Control and has extended support to a peaceful resolution of the current situation.

"We are closely monitoring the situation between Indian and Chinese forces along the Line of Actual Control. Both India and China have expressed a desire to de-escalate, and we support a peaceful resolution of the current situation," a State Department spokesperson said.

This comes hours after India said that 20 of its Army personnel were killed in violent clashes with Chinese troops at Galway Valley at the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
 

"We note the Indian military has announced that 20 soldiers have died, and we offer our condolences to their families. During their phone call on June 2, 2020, President Trump and Prime Minister Modi discussed the situation on the India-China border," the spokesperson further said.

During the faceoff, the External Affairs Ministry said, both sides suffered casualties and the Chinese side had departed from the consensus to respect the LAC in the Galway Valley.

The faceoff happened on late evening and night of June 15 in Ladakh's Galwan Valley as a result of an attempt by the Chinese troops to "unilaterally change" the status quo during de-escalation in Eastern Ladakh.