NEW DELHI, 07 January 2022, (TON): The Union Ministry of External Affairs said that it is closely monitoring the construction of a bridge by China across East Ladakh’s Pangong lake.

The ministry’s spokesperson Arindam Bagchi told reporters “the bridge is being constructed in an area that is under China’s illegal occupation and the Indian government is taking steps to safeguard the country’s security interests.”

China is constructing a bridge across East Ladakh’s Pangong Tso that would potentially allow its People’s Liberation Army to deploy troops faster between the north and south banks of the lake.

One-third of the nearly 160 kilometre-long lake lies in India, and the other two-third in China. It was one of the prominent flashpoints when border tensions between the two countries flared up in June 2020.

Bagchi also commented on a purported video shared by Chinese media of People’s Liberation Army soldiers in the Galwan valley on New Year’s day.