Indian soldiers at the border with China in Bumla in 2012.
Photo: Anupam Nath/Associated PressNEW DELHI—Border tensions between India and China turned deadly after the two countries’ security forces clashed in one of the disputed areas in the Himalayan mountains, killing three Indian personnel.
Monday night’s violence could hamper talks between senior military leaders and through diplomatic channels aimed at calming the situation that has been festering for months.
The Indian army said on Tuesday that two of its soldiers and an officer died in the clash, even as de-escalation was under way, and that there were deaths on both sides.
A spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Zhao Lijian, didn’t confirm any deaths of Indian or Chinese soldiers but said Indian forces crossed the border twice to “carry out illegal activities” on Monday. An Indian army spokesman didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
“They provocatively attacked Chinese personnel, resulting in serious physical clashes between the border forces of the two sides, Mr. Zhao said, adding that China has made representations to India.
Senior Chinese and Indian military officials are meeting to defuse the situation, India’s army said.
An Indian security official said he thought it was the first time in more than four decades that an Indian soldier was killed by someone in the Chinese military. In 1975, four Indian soldiers were killed while patrolling a border area.
Disputes between the two countries have grown in the past decade along their more than 2,000-mile border, with much of it contested and undefined. Since early May, Indian and Chinese forces have been engaged in standoffs at various locations. In one instance, scores of soldiers shouted at each other and exchanged blows, with injuries on both sides.
The two countries have since deployed thousands of additional troops and equipment to strategic border points, according to Indian officials.
Senior military commanders of the two countries have been engaged in talks in addition to those taking place for the past several days through diplomatic channels.
Last week, as a confidence-building measure, Chinese troops moved back several miles from the front line at three disputed border points and the Indian side reciprocated.
The flare-up could thwart such efforts.
“China’s aggression, and the killings, mark a turning point in Sino-Indian relations,” said Brahma Chellaney, professor of strategic studies at the New Delhi-based Centre for Policy Research. “The military fatalities in a confrontation underscores the risk of a larger military conflict.”
China and India fought a war along the border in 1962, and they dispute the location of their boundary in several places. Flare-ups and disputes over infrastructure frequently occur.
The two countries faced off for more than two months in 2017 over a stretch of land between China and Bhutan, an Indian ally, that India regards as crucial to defending its claims against China. They eventually worked out a deal for their troops to step back.
Write to Rajesh Roy at rajesh.roy@wsj.com
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