New Delhi: Indian Army Chief Manoj Mukund Naravane has said that India’s military strength has increased significantly in the last 18 months. He said that India has greatly strengthened its position near the border in Ladakh. He assured that India would return victorious in the event of a war with China. Speaking at a press conference on the occasion of the annual Army Day on Wednesday, the Army Chief made it clear that war is the last option and talks with China are continuing to resolve the border dispute.
Army Chief Naravane said that as far as the Northern Front is concerned, our military strength has increased there in the last 18 months. He said that a war situation is the last resort, but if there is a war, we will come back victorious.
The Army Chief also briefed the media about the current situation along the northern and western borders and said that the Indian Army has responded strongly to China’s attempts to change the status quo along the border. He emphasized that the state of war is the last resort. He told that we have deployed 25,000 additional forces in the area. We are building a road. Pool and tunnel are also being built. We have made arrangements there to store fuel, oil and ammunition. Apart from this, other facilities will also be arranged there in the coming days. A lot of work has been done in the last year.
The army chief said that because of what we have done, we are in a better position there. He said that we are not focusing only on one side, but we are taking a holistic view on the entire northern front. It is not only about increasing the number of armed forces but also about increasing the number of weapons. There is also talk of infrastructure development here.
Regarding maintaining peace and order on the border with China, the army chief said that it is a good thing that talks are going on. He said that we can solve it through dialogue and this is a very important mechanism. To understand each other’s point of view, it is necessary that our conversation continues. Whenever we talk, our distance becomes a little less. By the way, it is unnecessary to expect any outcome in every negotiation.