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Indian Military Chopper Crashes Near China Border, 7 Dead

An Indian Air Force Mi-17 helicopter hovers above the Tawi river during a rescue sortie to pick up two men (R) stranded during floods in the outskirts of Jammu on August 14, 2013: AFP
An Indian Air Force Mi-17 helicopter hovers above the Tawi river during a rescue sortie to pick up two men (R) stranded during floods in the outskirts of Jammu on August 14, 2013: AFP
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Indian Military Chopper Crashes Near China Border, 7 Dead

An Indian Air Force Mi-17 helicopter hovers above the Tawi river during a rescue sortie to pick up two men (R) stranded during floods in the outskirts of Jammu on August 14, 2013: AFP
An Indian Air Force Mi-17 helicopter hovers above the Tawi river during a rescue sortie to pick up two men (R) stranded during floods in the outskirts of Jammu on August 14, 2013: AFP

An Indian airforce helicopter crashed in a remote mountain area near the border with China on Friday, killing all seven troops on board, officials said.

The Russian-made Mi-17 helicopter was ferrying military officials to a forward post in the northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, defense spokesman Suneet Newton said.

The crash happened in Tawang, which is also claimed by China.

Tawawng is a strategically important border district and came briefly under Chinese control during the 1962 war between the two neighbouring countries. 

India's Air Force has a high rate of crashes owing to its ageing fleet. More than 170 pilots have lost their lives over the last three decades.

India is spending billions of dollars trying to modernise its airforce with new planes and helicopters but the procurement process has been slow.

Newton said the cause of Friday's crash was not known immediately.

India has also been expanding its military infrastructure in the area to narrow the gap with China which has superior road and air links.

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Russia Says US Using Taiwan to Stir Crisis in Asia

Participants wave Taiwanese flags during the Kuomintang (KMT) National Congress in Taoyuan on November 24, 2024. (Photo by Yu Chien Huang / AFP)
Participants wave Taiwanese flags during the Kuomintang (KMT) National Congress in Taoyuan on November 24, 2024. (Photo by Yu Chien Huang / AFP)
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Russia Says US Using Taiwan to Stir Crisis in Asia

Participants wave Taiwanese flags during the Kuomintang (KMT) National Congress in Taoyuan on November 24, 2024. (Photo by Yu Chien Huang / AFP)
Participants wave Taiwanese flags during the Kuomintang (KMT) National Congress in Taoyuan on November 24, 2024. (Photo by Yu Chien Huang / AFP)

The United States is using Taiwan to provoke a serious crisis in Asia, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko told TASS news agency in remarks published on Sunday, reiterating Moscow's backing of China's stance on Taiwan.
"We see that Washington, in violation of the 'one China' principle that it recognises, is strengthening military-political contacts with Taipei under the slogan of maintaining the 'status quo', and increasing arms supplies," Rudenko told the state news agency.
"The goal of such obvious US interference in the region's affairs is to provoke the PRC (People's Republic of China) and generate a crisis in Asia to suit its own selfish interests."
The report did not cite any specific contacts that Rudenko was referring to.
China views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, a claim that Taiwan's government rejects. The US is Taiwan's most important international backer and arms supplier, despite the lack of formal diplomatic recognition.
The US State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Rudenko's remarks outside office hours.
In September, President Joe Biden approved $567 million in military support for Taiwan. Russia responded that it was standing alongside China on Asian issues, including criticism of the US drive to extend its influence and "deliberate attempts" to inflame the situation around Taiwan.
China and Russia declared a "no limits" partnership in February 2022 when President Vladimir Putin visited Beijing shortly before launching a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, triggering the deadliest land war in Europe since World War Two.
In May this year, Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged a "new era" of partnership between the two most powerful rivals of the United States, which they cast as an aggressive Cold War hegemon sowing chaos across the world.