India

The fiercely contested LAC separates Chinese and Indian held territories from Ladakh in the west to India’s eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, which China claims in its entirety. It is broken in parts where the Himalayan nations of Nepal and Bhutan border China. … [Read more...] about AP Explains: What’s driving India-China military standoff

“It was the Indian side that fired first in the Monday incident in which Indian troops again illegally crossed the Line of Actual Control (LAC) of the China-India border and outrageously fired warning shots at Chinese border defense patrol personnel who were attempting to negotiate,” the Chinese state-run Global Times propaganda outlet paraphrased spokesman Zhao Lijian as saying on Tuesday.Global Times declared that a “new era of bloodshed” would soon begin between the two countries, blaming India exclusively for the predicted violence. … [Read more...] about China and India Accuse Each Other of Firing First Shots over Border in 45 Years

US President Donald Trump wears a face mask as he visits Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, on July 11. This was the first time since the pandemic began that the White House press corps got a glimpse of Trump with a face covering. … [Read more...] about India has one of the world’s lowest Covid-19 mortality rates. But the numbers don’t tell the whole story

— South Korea’s new coronavirus cases stayed below 200 for a ninth consecutive day. South Korea’s caseload once surpassed 400 in late August, but the outbreak has since gradually slowed after elevated social distancing rules in the Seoul area. The 176 new cases reported Friday are more than reported in the last few days. But health official Yoon Taeho told reporters that the government believes the caseload is in general on a downward trajectory though he urged citizens to keep trying to reduce face-to-face contacts with others and follow social distancing guidelines. … [Read more...] about Asia Today: India adds 96K virus cases, orders some retests

"At strategic and operational levels, both militaries have exercised restraint," he said. "However, at the tactical level, face-offs occur due to differing perceptions of where the actual border is as the LAC is not delineated on the ground. While face-offs get resolved locally, those related to the building of infrastructure, such as roads and defence fortifications, invariably take longer and require a combination of military and diplomatic initiatives." … [Read more...] about India’s Modi responds to ‘violent face-off’ with China over Himalayan border