Excerpts
Like in Galwan, the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) was planning to set up an observation post (OP) on the LAC, IANS reported, quoting a senior Army officer posted in the region. "It is already extremely cold there. Within the next couple of weeks, all areas close to the LAC will be under several feet of snow. On the Indian side, final preparations are being made to stock our forward positions with adequate supplies. There is a lot of troop movement as well. The PLA is certainly interested to learn more about our preparations for the winter, hence the decision to set up the OP," the army officer, who is not identified in the IANS report, said.
Former Indian Army chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane has said that China's attempts to change the status quo on the LAC by resorting to "salami slicing" tactics have led to a "more assertive" response from the Indian Army. "China has been trying to alter the status quo along the LAC for many years, decades in fact, and they have been doing this in very small incremental steps which by themselves do not look very dangerous. They look quite innocuous. What we call salami slicing, coming up one inch at a time. But in the bargain over a period of time they have gained a lot. This is the tactics they have adopted and were continuing to do,"
The Indian Air Force will carry out a two-day exercise in the Northeast involving almost all its frontline fighter jets and other assets deployed in the region. Sources said the exercise is aimed at checking the IAF's overall combat capability and military preparedness in the region. The sources said IAF's frontline fighter jets including Sukhoi-30MKIs and Rafale jets will be part of the exercise besides several other platforms deployed in the region. All frontline air bases and some key Advanced Landing Grounds (ALGs) in the Northeast are set to be involved in the exercise, said a source.