China’s Death Toll in Bloody India–China Border Clash Remains a Mystery

Chinese regiment commander Qi Fabao shouts to an Indian soldier who wants to negotiate with him at Galwan Valley, a India–China border region, in June 2020. Screenshot/Weibo

China’s state-run media announced on Feb. 19 that four Chinese soldiers died at Galwan Valley, an India–China border region, in a violent face-off on June 15, 2020, while an Indian officer said China’s death toll was 45.

It was the first deadly clash on the China–India border in the past four decades.