Describing Xi Jinping as the “architect” of recent aggressive moves against India, a leading US magazine has reported that the Chinese president has risked his future with the high-profile incursions into Indian territory that “unexpectedly flopped” in the face of ferocious fightback by the Indian Army.
Xi, 67, already roiling the Communist Party with a “rectification” campaign and mass persecution of foes, will launch “another brutal purge” following the Chinese Army’s failures on the Indian border.
“Unfortunately for Xi, he is the “architect” of these aggressive moves into India and his People”s Liberation Army (PLA) has unexpectedly flopped. The Chinese army’s failures on the Indian border will have consequences,” it said, adding that the recent developments give Xi an excuse to pick up the pace of replacing adversaries in the armed forces with loyal elements.
Tensions escalated manifold along the LAC in eastern Ladakh after the Galwan Valley clashes on June 15 in which 20 Indian Army personnel were killed. The Chinese side also suffered casualties but it is yet to give out the details. Citing Cleo Paskal of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, it said the number of Chinese killed could exceed 60.
It said that late last month, for the first time in a half-century, India carried out an offensive against China, taking back high ground the Chinese recently grabbed. “China’s forces were surprised when Indian troops mounted their attempt to retake strategic high points. Stunned Chinese soldiers retreated,” it said.
It said the PLA Ground Force can move against undefended targets. However, it is not clear how effective it is in battle.
“The game has changed,” Paskal said. “You can say the Indians are more aggressive or more aggressively defensive, but they are in fact bolder and better.” “The setback in the Himalayas poses problems for Xi, which means it poses a problem for everyone else,” it added.
“More important, the failures motivate China’s aggressive ruler, who as chairman of the Party’s Central Military Commission, is the leader of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and the ruling Communist Party of China, to launch another offensive against Indian positions,” the magazine, in an opinion piece, warned.
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