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Sumdorong Chu Standoff
Sumdorong-Chu. Image Credits: WikipediaIn 1986-87, a military standoff occurred between India and China in the Sumdorong Chu Valley, which borders the Tawang district in Arunachal Pradesh and the Cona County in Tibet. The dispute arose from differences in their views on the ownership of the region. In 1962, China had attacked India when India attempted to take control of the Thag La ridge in the same area, and India had not returned to the region since then.
In the early 1980s, the Indian government approved a plan to improve the deployment of forces along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China, and India's intelligence team visited Sumdorong Chu in 1983-84. In 1986, tensions escalated when China began to establish semi-permanent structures in the region. India sent 200 troops to occupy the neighboring Longro La ridge, and in October, under Operation Falcon, Indian troops were airlifted to Zemithang to occupy the high ground near Sumdorong Chu. This led to threats of another war, and India declared Arunachal Pradesh a state.
However, the situation was defused through diplomatic efforts. India offered to withdraw its troops during the winter if China would do the same, but China did not accept the offer. In May 1987, the Indian External Affairs minister P. V. Narasimha Rao visited Beijing, and the first formal flag meeting to help thaw the situation happened on August 5, 1987, at Bum La.
In the aftermath of the standoff, India and China reached an agreement on how tensions along the border would be mitigated in the future. The basic facts of the standoff are accurate, but the original passage contained some minor errors and inconsistencies. The revised version provides a clearer and more accurate account of the events.