Retd. Maj Gen GD Bakshi On Media Panic Over ITBP Statement Unwarranted; 'Thaw With China Works'

Retired Major General GD Bakshi dismissed the media firestorm over the DG ITBP’s recent statement as overblown, calling it a routine, anodyne remark meant to boost morale. He confirmed a face-off in the eastern sector where Chinese troops pitched tents in a contested grey zone after an earlier patrol encounter, but stressed that such standoffs are not uncommon given differing LAC perceptions.

With corps commander talks already underway, he argued India must maintain a strategic thaw with China to focus on the more pressing western front involving Pakistan and an increasingly aggressive United States, sticking to the Russia-India-China triangle rather than fighting on multiple fronts at once.