Aksai Chin: China builds extensive ecosystem to support troops

According to a Chatham House report, China has built a large number of installations and established an ecosystem to support its troop deployments in the disputed Aksai Chin region, including expanding roads, outposts, and camps.

The UK-based think tank’s report is based on an analysis of satellite images taken in the six months since October 2022, and it adds to other evidence of massive ramping up of infrastructure on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) since the start of a military standoff with India in May 2020.

According to a report from Chatham House, also known as the Royal Institute of International Affairs, satellite images of Aksai Chin show “expanded roads, outposts and modern weatherproof camps equipped with parking areas, solar panels and even helipads”, according to the report from Chatham House, also known as the Royal Institute of International Affairs.

According to the report, a new heliport is being built in disputed territory, away from the frontlines and near Aksai Chin Lake. According to the report, this facility, which includes 18 hangars and short runways for helicopters and possibly drones, will “significantly enhance the operational capabilities” of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in and around Aksai Chin.

According to reports on June 1st, using satellite images provided exclusively by Planet Labs, that China’s expansion of airfields along the LAC since 2020 has created capabilities for the PLA to conduct a broader range of operations and counter India’s comparative advantages in some areas.

The border standoff has brought India-China relations to a six-decade low, particularly after a brutal clash in June 2020 at Galwan Valley killed 20 Indian soldiers and at least four Chinese troops. India’s top leadership has maintained that ties cannot be normalized until the “abnormal” situation on the LAC is addressed.