Ok folks, so since Gilgit-Baltistan has been in news quite a bit in the past few days and weeks, let me share some perspective on PoJK and Gilgit-Baltistan. In this thread, I intend talking about a historical perspective to the issue and the legal status of PoJK / GB.

Here goes ..

But first, let me share this video of the Prime Minister of India speaking from the Red Fort not very long ago.

Then last year, after the abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A, came these statements from the Home Minister, clearly specifying the territorial limits of Jammu and Kashmir:-

Of course, questions were raised by the media here in India, leading to this statement from the Chief of the Army Staff soon thereafter:-

Before moving ahead, a quick word on the geography of the area. Total area of J&K is approx 222,236 sq km. Area under illegal occupation of Pakistan is about 78114 Sq Km. Are under Chinese occupation = 47,815sq Km (Including Shaksgam). India controls 101,437 Sq Km (45%) of J&K.

Now coming on to the HISTORY of J&K .. To begin with, it is important to note that the widespread ignorance about the historical background of Jammu & Kashmir has perpetuated various myths about its evolution

The main myths include the beliefs that the princely state of J&K was an artificial entity created by the Dogras, also that the entire region was never a part of the same political dispensation and that G-B always existed as a distinct political entity separate from Ladakh & J&K.

There is another belief professed by Pakistan that it was an indigenous movement by the local population that actually led to the separation of Gilgit-Baltistan from the State of Jammu & Kashmir.

All these myths are nothing but Pakistani attempts to merge Gilgit-Baltistan as her Fifth Province, so that international apprehensions on CPEC could be assuaged. THIS is the bottomline as far as all these issues in highlight over the past few days go.

Hence this blog post. Let me go about trying to bust these myths created by Pakistan over the past few years and decades.

Both Ladakh & Jammu & Kashmir, have been part of India’s political & cultural domain and spiritual consciousness since the Mahabharat period. These linkages manifest visibly in the Ganpatyar, Shankaracharya & Kheer Bhavani Temples located in the Kashmir Valley.

In the Third Century BC, Emperor Ashoka introduced Buddhism and the Mahayana School of Buddhism originated in Kashmir. It subsequently attained pre-eminence during the Fourth Buddhist Council held here by Emperor Kanishka in the First Century AD.

Emperor Lalitaditya’s reign from 724 to 760 AD marked the golden age of Kashmir and the Zenith of the Hindu Karkota Empire and the Kashmiri Shaivism.

Islam came in gradually in the 14th Century giving birth to a Sufi tradition of Kashmiriyat, influenced by Muslim saints, one of whom, Sheikh Nuruddin Noorani also known as Nund Rishi, lies laid to rest at Charar-e-Sharif.

Throughout history, ALL the regions of Jammu & Kashmir have been integral parts of the Kashmir Empire and continued so until the Dogra Empire of the nineteenth & the twentieth century. (Second Pic – Maharaja Gulab Singh)

As a matter of fact, Rinchen, the first Muslim King was a Prince of Ladakh, who was rechristened as Sadruddin Shah (Pic 1) on conversion to Islam & the last major independent Muslim Dynasty that ruled Kashmir – The Chak Dynasty – had migrated from Gilgit.

These facts highlight close intra-regional cultural and political connections. Moreover, it goes to prove that the history of the Areas under present Pak Occupied Jammu & Kashmir including Gilgit-Baltistan have an umbilical connection to the history of Kashmir itself.

With Mughals, Kashmir became a province of Delhi Empire in 1540 AD and continued to be ruled by its Governors for three centuries.

A six decade Afghan rule under the Durranis succeeded the Mughals and thereafter in 1819 AD, Kashmir came under the Sikh Power of Maharaja Ranjit Singh.

It is important to note that the Sikh Rule was initially confined to the Kashmir Valley and the Jammu Region was given to Raja Gulab Singh as a Jagir by Maharaja Ranjit Singh in 1820.

After consolidating his position in the Jammu Region, Gulab Singh assisted ably by General Zorawar Singh captured Ladakh & Baltistan by 1840.

On the other hand, Gilgit was captured by Col Nathu Shah for the Sikhs around the same time.

By this time the 11 peripheral principalities of the state in and around Gilgit-Baltistan, which historically had remained Vassal States to the ruling dispensation at Srinagar became independent of the Central Authority in Srinagar. Do note Chitral too as part of those!

In 1846, Treaty of Lahore was signed after the defeat of the Sikh army at the Battle of Sabraon in the First Anglo – Sikh War. This forced the Sikhs to cede all territories between the Beas & Sutlej and Pay Rs 1 Crore as war indemnity.

Lal Singh, the then Prime Minister of the Sikhs offered all Hill territories of the Kingdom including Jammu & Kashmir in lieu of the indemnity. The British then offered to make Raja Gulab Singh the Independent ruler of Jammu & Kashmir provided he paid the indemnity amount.

Thus, at a reduced amount of Rs 75 Lakhs, the British transferred the territory of Jammu & Kashmir to Raja Gulab Singh at the Treaty of Amritsar.

This treaty made Gulab Singh the absolute ruler of Kashmir and a full-fledged sovereign of Jammu, Kashmir & Ladakh, as well as Gilgit & Baltistan, but like elsewhere Britain retained exclusive authority over Defence, Foreign Affairs & Communications.

Thus, the demographic fabric of the Princely State consisted a Buddhist majority Ladakh, Muslim majority Kashmir, Western Jammu, Gilgit & Baltistan & a Hindu majority Jammu region – stitches that proved to be reasons for Hari Singh’s indecisiveness and the rapid annexation of the Western Jammu regions in the subsequent tribal invasion of 1947.

The British, interestingly, encouraged Gulab Singh to spread his political influence in Gilgit – Baltistan, so as to establish a safe buffer state between Russia & British India as by 1866, the entire region had come under the control of the Dogras.

The British Policies towards Kashmir fluctuated with developments in India & Central Asia and were necessitated by a need to prevent the growing Russian influence.

They interfered with the Maharaja’s administration on the pretext that the Maharaja was inflicting severe hardships on his subjects, especially in Gilgit.

Thus, Gilgit Agency was established in 1877 with a nominated British Political agent, who was withdrawn & later reappointed in 1889 in view of the growing Afghan influence in Chitral as well as Russian activities in Central Asia.

However, consequent to the Russian Revolution, British anxieties over the Gilgit region increased & the Maharaja was forced to lease the Gilgit Agency to the British for a period of 60 years with effect from March 1935. Thus, Gilgit region was divided as the Gilgit Agency and the Gilgit Wazarat (District). The Gilgit Agency, directly under the British rule, included Principalities of Hunza, Nagar, Chitral, Punial, Yasin, Kuh Ghizer, Ishkoman, Chilas, Gor & Darel-Tangir. Once again, note Chitral!

The Gilgit Wazarat retained under the Jammu & Kashmir Darbar, included Gilgit, Astor & Bunji. As a result, despite being a part of the Maharaja’s territory, a huge portion of Gilgit including the vassal states were under British civil & military administration.

The announcement of independence forced the British to hand the Gilgit Agency back to the Maharaja in July 1947 – A ploy & an arrangement that would play a major role in the illegal annexation of the Gilgit Agency to Pakistan in 1947.

Hari Singh’s ascension to the throne of Jammu & Kashmir in 1925 coincided with the awakening of mass political consciousness throughout India, which found an echo in Jammu & Kashmir as well.

However, the popular movement in this princely state was directed more at the rule of Dogra dynasty spearheaded by Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah through the All Jammu & Kashmir Muslim Conference.

He rechristened the party All Jammu & Kashmir National Conference indicating his leaning towards the Indian National Congress, thereby foreclosing any collaboration with Jinnah & the Muslim League. He was later, in favour of accession to India, but on favourable personal terms.

In 1946, ‘Maharaja Quit Kashmir’ movement was launched against the Maharaja by Sheikh Abdullah, leading to his immediate arrest. But the movement gathered enough momentum in the Princely State as India & Pak approached the dawn of independence preceded by a nightmare of partition.

At the announcement of partition, the Maharaja was still contemplating on a probable deep-within desire to retain sovereignty. He sent standstill agreements, each with the two Dominions of India & Pakistan with an intent to temporarily maintain status quo; Pakistan consented but India clearly conveyed ‘No Standstill Agreement without Accession’.

The horrifying events that unfolded after Jinnah’s call for Direct Action, irreversible polarization of people & ghastly communal riots in Indian provinces in the run up to Freedom added greater concerns to an already indecisive Maharaja.

In the end of Aug 1947, a number of Pakistani Nationals infiltrated into Poonch Jagir of the Princely State and began inciting the Muslim Sutti & Sudhan Tribes to launch protests against the Maharaja to force him to join Pakistan.

Spanning from Aug to Oct , these protests turned into a wildfire of killings of minorities and raids on frontier posts of State Forces all along the Western Jammu Region. Actions by armed & radicalized local groups assisted by 60,000 battle hardened demobilised soldiers, dispersed the State Forces into feeble penny-pockets, thereby preventing cohesive & coordinated counter-actions.

Sometime in Sep/Oct 1947 a radio intercept was received by the Indian Army saying 'The Gorkhas are under attack'. They checked all their Gorkha battalions but none reported any such thing.
It was later found out that the signal pertained to Gorkha troops of J&K State Forces. https://t.co/5hCbwB1APB

— Harpreet (@CestMoiz) January 15, 2020

Sudhan Separatist Leaders, Sardar Ibrahim Khan & Sardar Abdul Qayyum Khan masterminded these vicious actions and overtly collaborated with the Muslim League & Pakistan Army earning epithets of ‘Ghazi-e-Millat’ & ‘Mujahid-e-Awwal’ respectively.

On 21/22 Oct 1947, Pakistan unleashed OP GULMARG spearheaded by a notion of Jihad and radicalised Pashtun Tribal Lashkars led by Pakistani Officers. Muzaffarabad, Uri & Baramulla were attacked.

Maharaj Hari Singh dispatched Brig Rajendra Singh, his Army Chief towards Uri to contest the raiders. Brig Rajendra Singh, along with his handful of men, despite being outnumbered, fought a successful battle along Uri- Baramulla road, before he was martyred at Buniyar.

He was awarded India’s First MVC for a decisive action of delaying the raiders.

By 25 Oct 1947, the raiders reached Baramulla and stalled there to let loose barbaric acts of loot, plunder, savagery & rape, thereby, in a way, delaying their attack on Srinagar.

The J & K State Forces saw large scale desertions & defections in the Western & Northern frontier districts, which led to negligible or weak defence of border towns. Moreover, reinforcements did not reach in time except for Poonch & Kotli, which held out initially. Owing to the mass defections & desertions Kotli, Muzaffrabad, Bhimber, Rajauri & Mirpur fell early & easily.

On 24 Oct 1947, Sardar Ibrahim Khan declared Bhimber, Kotli, Mirpur & Muzaffarabad independent as ‘Azad Kashmir’ and himself came to be known as ‘Bani-e-Kashmir’.

These Western Districts, forcefully occupied by Pakistan owing to deceit, defections and treachery, today constitute the 10 districts of the PoK.

In order to salvage the deteriorating situation, Hari Singh approached India for help and on 26 Oct 1947 signed the Instrument of Accession to accede to India.

Consequently, Indian forces landed in Srinagar on 27 Oct 1947 to push back the intruders.

The ensuing battles in the region for the next 14 Months is a heroic saga of recapture of territory, highlighting ingenuity & perseverance, preceded and succeeded by iconic defensive battles. The Battles of Budgam, Jhangar, Naushera, Rajauri, Tithwal & Zojila stand out as a sterling testimony of the Indian Military character in its nascent days itself.

Poonch Town, besieged in Nov 1947, remained so for almost over an year. The bravery & steely resolve displayed by Lt Col Pritam Singh, alias ‘Sher Bachcha’ & Air Commodore Mehar Singh alias ‘Mehar Baba’ prevented its fall against all odds.

Op Easy launched by the Jammu Division for linking up Poonch via Rajouri, finally relieved it on 20 Nov 1948.

Now coming over to Gilgit-Baltistan.
With the lapse of paramountcy in Aug 1947, Brigadier Ghansara Singh was made the Governor of Gilgit on premature British termination of the lease of Gilgit.

The region had at that time, one State Forces Battalion & 500 troops of Gilgit Scouts commanded by Maj William Alexander Brown. Muslim officers & troops of the State Forces and the Gilgit Scouts established contact with Maj William Brown to establish Pakistani Rule in Gilgit.

However, all the Rajas of the region professed loyalty to Maharaja Hari Singh except the Mehtar of Chitral.

On accession of Kashmir to India, there was a pandemonium in Gilgit and on 01 Nov, Ghansara Singh was arrested by the troops of Gilgit Scouts leading to the disintegration of the State Forces which resulted in massive killing of non-muslim comrades by Muslim troops of the State Forces Battalion & Gilgit Scouts.

On 04 Nov 1947, Pakistani flag was hoisted by Maj William Brown at the Gilgit Scouts lines & Peshawar was informed of Gilgit’s accession to Pakistan along with principalities of Hunza & Nagar.

Justifying his actions under a clandestine operation called OP DATTAKHEL, as ‘Coup-de-Etat’, he had remarked, “My actions appeared to possess all the elements of high treason, yet I know in my own mind that what I had done was right”, unquote.

From Indian point of view, Maj Brown’s action indicated British complicity, various conspiracy theories and Pakistani-British connivance, which surely gets substantiated by him being awarded the Sitara-e-Imtiaz, the third highest civilian award in Pakistan, posthumously in 1993.

By the end of Nov 1947, Pakistan was in complete control of Gilgit, paving way for incursions into Baltistan. However, the onset of winters prevented immediate action.

In the meanwhile, Lt Col Sher Jung Thapa of the State Forces took up defences at Tsari, 20 Miles North West of Skardu. Tsari was attacked and overrun on 8/9 Feb 1948 and Skardu was beseiged on 14 February 1948 which continued until 14 Aug 1948, a total of 185 days.

Skardu fell only when it ran out of ammo, but the heroic & determined stand of Sher Jung Thapa & his men at Skardu delayed the operations of the raiders towards Kargil & Leh.

The raiders in the meantime had bypassed Skardu & took control of Kargil, Dras & Zojila Pass – threatening Leh. Leh could only be saved by air landing troops on a newly constructed airstrip by Sonam Norbu, a local engineer.

Subsequently, Operation Bison led to the recapture of Zojila & Kargil prior to ceasefire on 31 Dec 1948.

Seeing the geographic proximity of areas & alignment of the CFL, many questions are raised that seek an answer even today, that why this pursuit of raiders was left incomplete?

However, whatever be the reason, fact remains that history can no longer be changed, though no one knows what the future might hold!

Folks, let me share some thoughts on the latest developments in Eastern Ladakh over the past few days. As always, writing this blog post on the go, in the hope that it will eventually make sense!

Here goes ..

Firstly, I will NOT talk about the specific military situation in the area because, frankly, there is far too much noise on social media for me to paint a correct picture of what exactly has happened on the ground.

That said, the only fair assumption that I am going to endorse is that Indian troops have actually gone and occupied some heights with the aim of pre-empting Chinese movements. In fact, this seems to have been the line of the Chinese as well. So before moving ahead, let me delve on this particular aspect for some time.

At the outset let me say – This is HUGE!

And why do I say that?

Well, this is because it seems to be the first time that Indian soldiers have actually done something like this on the LAC (Doklam notwithstanding. That was a different ball-game altogether).

So much so, that the Chinese themselves didn’t know how to react to this event. Such was the confusion that Shri Hu went crying on Twitter that ‘THIS TIME’ it was the Indians that had changed the status quo, implicitly acknowledging that thus far it was China that was doing so!

In fact, so rattled were they that they went into a ‘statement frenzy’, ‘denouncing’ India for trying to emulate what they themselves have been doing for all these years! I guess they didn’t get the memo that says ‘Imitation is the best form of flattery’!

This brings me to yet another question – Have we really gone 4km inside Chinese territory?
Well, who knows!
Regardless, fact remains that the mere occupation of commanding heights implies that if not physically, we would still be able to visually dominate a large area beyond and if need be, interfere with PLA movements there. Remember Kargil, and the threat to NH-1 posed by the Pakis?

How far ahead can we do that, depends upon the geography of the are which again, I have absolutely no idea about. But then, the 4km figure does get some context.

Next question is whether we have actually crossed the LAC or not.

Out here, what I’ll offer is the fact that firstly, the LAC has NOT been officially demarcated by India and China. Instead, what exists is a perception of where the LAC lies. This naturally means that there are areas that both sides claim to be on their side of the LAC.

In fact, this was what the initial fracas over the various Fingers from 4 to 8 all about in the months of May and June.

So what my guess is that the Indian armymen might very much be on their own side of what they claim, while having physically crossed and occupied areas that China thinks belongs to them.

From various accounts, one thing that is crystal clear is that it was a tactical move, undertaken to pre-empt the Chinese.

That it caught the Chinese by surprise says a LOT about the mental faculties of the PLA commanders and their rigid decision making.

Oh, talking about ‘rigid’, I’ll just leave this tweet from a few days ago over here.

Ok, coming back to this blog post, it is a fair assumption to say that the PLA are justified in crying buckets at having ‘lost’ territory to the Indian Army. Well, here is a piece of news for them – they have a LOT more territory to lose .. all of Aksai Chin, in fact.

Another V.E.R.Y interesting aspect that more or less is agreed to be true is the fact that Tibetan troops of the ‘hush hush establishment’ (which has its own wikipedia page, btw!) were involved as well!

#AanDeyo!
This is BIG!
Not only have the PLA lost territory after a really long time, but they have lost it to Tibetan brothers! https://t.co/xG5NySsana

— Harpreet (@CestMoiz) August 31, 2020

No wonder that the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokie was a bit .. err .. curious about Tibetans serving as Indian troops!

This fact is as symbolic in the perception realm as it is deadly on the battlefield. The Tibetans are universally acknowledged to be under tremendous suppression by China. The news of they actually fighting back to re-enter their lands, even if in a small increment, is bound to pique interest in a LOT of world capitals, not to say galvanize their fellow countrymen who are still under Chinese occupation within Tibet itself.

So herein lies yet another symbolic victory, going more than the 4km being talked about.

In fact, it goes all the way to Lhasa!

Of course, lest I be declared guilty of getting carried away in a premature victory dance, let me put it out that the ongoing fracas in Eastern Ladakh is still very far from resolution. Things can still get resolved amicably (till the next round, that is), or go far south.

But one thing is for sure – For the time being it is China that seems to be in uncharted territory. I say it not only due to the fact that there have been so many statements from so many Chinese stakeholders (refer a few tweets above), but also since it is now the PLA that have the unenvious task of reacting to an Indian move.

Do they go and physically dislodge the Indians from those heights now?

But isn’t the era of nail studded clubs and stones and fisticuffs over, thanks to the sacrifice of the boys of the Bihar Regiment & their CO?

And what about the tens of thousands of troops amassed by India in the region?

Bottomline: I wouldn’t be envious of the situation that the Chinese commander would be finding himself in at this moment. And no, it is not just about the events on the battlefield, but also the pressure he must be under from the very highest political echelons in Beijing!

Btw, talking about the tens of thousands of troops, I’m not too sure about the PLA being very excited about staying the winter in these areas, their heated and oxygenated tents notwithstanding!

On the contrary, I saw reports on my TL that the Indian Army had procured (or was in the process of procuring) additional winter gear for 30,000 soldiers!

Call it whatever, but I call it a brilliant psychological punch right in the solar plexus of the PLA!

By amassing all those young boys flaunting their shiny toys, the PLA would have thought that they could just roll over the Indians without even having to fire a bullet. But here was the Tiger showing the finger to the Dragon by not just hastening his infrastructure projects but also signalling his readiness to take on the Dragon, man to man as well!

I pity the poor single child ‘princelings’ that make up the PLA for the long winter that stares at them not too far from now. I wonder how will they keep themselves amused! (https://metro.co.uk/2017/08/24/chinese-soldiers-failed-fitness-tests-because-they-are-too-unfit-and-masturbate-too-much-6876635/)

But jokes apart, on a more serious note, two large masses of armed men sitting not very far from each other and that too, under such circumstances, is never a good news.

All it takes is one little misunderstanding, or one error in judgement on part of any commander at any level can result in things getting out of hand at a moment’s notice.

Not that I doubt our boys aren’t prepared for that, mind you. Our boys are amongst the best soldiers anywhere in the world, a fact that wasn’t lost to the PLA in 1962 as well!

1962 War
RezangLa
Walong
Kibithu
Nuranag
BumLa

Wherever Commanders didn't panic & actually led their men, the Indian soldier stood like a ROCK.#Fact#WalongDay

— Harpreet (@CestMoiz) November 14, 2019

On the other hand, empirical evidence suggests quite the contrary about the PLA. Here’s what I blogged about their performance under fire by rag -tag militiamen some years ago :-

#PLA_Myths
3
But it is the second part of the headline that caught my eye – CHINESE TROOPS ABANDONED THEIR POSTS RATHER THAN ENGAGE IN FIGHTING AND PROTECT CIVILIANS!

— Harpreet (@CestMoiz) May 26, 2019

Yet, once the guns start booming, there is not knowing when or how will they stop. Add to this the fact that there is a real possibility of such a contingency spreading to other areas as well, including Sikkim and Arunachal. Wrote about it some months ago the blog post linked below:

On The Galwan Face-off: PART II (Post the Prime Minister’s Address

This brings me to another question, or a flight of fancy, if you choose to call it that – Will a military clash, if it happens, stay confined to merely the Himalayas, or will China find guns shooting at it from the South/East China Sea and/or Taiwan Strait as well?

Yup, you may want to read that question above once more.

I have no doubts in my mind that the days of the world at large blindly believing the crap of ‘peaceful rise’ of China are well and truly over. All it takes is a mere glance at various statements and more importantly, ACTIONS around the world and you know that a LOT of paradigms related to China are changing.

Add to that the upcoming US elections and things don’t look too rosy for Xi ‘Winnie The Pooh’ Jinping in the days and weeks to come.

I wrote about this as well, some months ago in THIS blog post just as the world was learning how to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Must read the blog post linked above. I insist!

So here it is – all this hype and hoopla on social media notwithstanding (including this blog post by me), what speaks the LOUDEST is, in fact, the utter quiet on the part of the GOI, even as the PRC goes ballistic with statement after statement.

This silence has a LOT to say indeed. Call it whatever u may, I choose to draw an analogy with the golden silence of India against Pakistani ramblings in all recent border tensions, starting with the BSF mortars playing havoc with Pakistan Rangers in Oct 2014, right upto the abrogation of Article 370.

All in all, the coming days, weeks and even months are going to be testing times for our Nation in particular and the world in general.

The PLA, in any case not very keen to spend the winters in the middle of nowhere, may even end up forcing the hand of their political masters. 

How might that manifest remains to be seen.

I’d assume that the weather will start getting colder and colder from October onwards. So that leaves the entire month of September open for any contingency that they might seek.

Call it a personal bias, but September is something that I have been looking at since long, not just on the Himalayas but elsewhere as well.

But one fact remains crystal clear – the PLA knows all too well that the Indian soldier is no pushover on the battlefield, a fact that was further underlined on the night of 15-16 June in Galwan at the hands of Col Santosh Babu and his Vir Biharis.

The PLA may signal their willingness to stay the winter all that they want, but fact remains that the moment the first gun fires, they might be worse off logistically than the Indian Army.

25
But then, what exactly happens in case situation deteriorates and guns actually end up opening up again on the LAC after nearly 53 years?
First of all, all those beautifully pitched tents of the PLA will be up in smoke for sure!
Satellite imagery works both ways, no?

— Harpreet (@CestMoiz) June 1, 2020

The areas in contention today are the same where the PLA lost hundreds of their men at the hands of ill-equipped Indian soldiers in 1962, who earned TWO Param Vir Chakras that winter.

The elephant may be a reluctant fighter, but when it does, it tramples all in its path.

I think it is time to wind up this blog post with another ‘flight of fancy’ – What are the odds that the current situation on the LAC is actually a manifestation of a political upheaval going on in Beijing?

This too might be worth ruminating over, for what it’s worth.

Talking about Tibetan brothers getting back to their lands, the Global Times may let out all sorts of propaganda videos in the vain hope that these will scare the Indians, but fact remains that they can NEVER even come close to making something like this of the Tibetan Warriors!

In the end, I’ll just leave this tweet here to sum up this chain of thoughts.

Bottomline – This is just the beginning.
It is a civilizational war – one that was ordained the day the first PLA soldier set his foot in the holy lands of Tibet.
Days, weeks and months ahead will be really interesting to watch.
Brace yourselves, folks.https://t.co/i5oNru5YUx

— Harpreet (@CestMoiz) September 1, 2020

This is just the beginning, mind you .. the beginning of the end, that is. The process may take days, weeks or even years, but it is well and truly underway.

Before signing off, let me just link THIS blog post that I wrote some years ago on the Doklam Standoff. Plz do read this one as well. I insist!