Article Posted on : - Sep 09, 2009

Chinese army officers at Nathula Pass, a section of the border between India and China. A File Photo.

BEIJING (PTI): China Tuesday brushed aside reports of its border guards having intruded into Ladakh in India and painted boulders and rocks red there but said the two neighbours should work together to jointly safeguard peace and tranquillity in the frontier.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Jiang Yu told a media briefing that the Chinese side strictly followed the relevant provisions of the border patrol and did not cross into Indian territory while dismissing the reports as "groundless and incorrect."

As the Sino-India border issue remains unresolved, both sides should work together to jointly safeguard peace and tranquillity in border areas, she said when asked to comment on a report that Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) guards had violated the International Border in Ladakh region and painted boulders and rocks in the area red.

The Chinese troops entered nearly 1.5-km into the Indian territory near Mount Gya, recognised as International Border by India and China, and painted the boulders and rocks with red spray paint, Indian officials had said.

The incursions were reported from the area, generally referred in the Chumar sector in east of Leh, and the guards had painted 'China' in Mandarin with red spray paint all over the boulders and rocks, they said.