India deploys fighter jets and China beefs up military after border clashes sparked fears of war between nuclear powers

INDIA has deployed fighter jets and have sent more soldiers to the disputed border region with China following a bloody clash which killed 20 Indian soldiers.

The Indian fighter jets roared over the Himalayan flashpoint - as a way of showing military strength despite both sides declaring they would pull back forces from the region.

This hostility comes just days after commanders on both sides agreed to disengage troops from the Ladakh region of the Western Himalayas.

Chinese forces have held onto a chunk of land covering several square miles at the mouth of the Galwan valley - following the deadly brawl on June 15.

The bloody violence saw 500 soldiers fighting with spiked clubs in a clash that left at least 20 Indian soldiers dead.

Despite this, Indian jets regularly took off on Wednesday from a military base in Leh, the main Indian town in the contested region, heading towards the mountainous border 150 miles away.

There were also checkpoints on main roads out of Leh and a frenzy of military activity around the main town, which lies at 3,500 metres.

Residents also reported long lines of military trucks and artillery on roads near Leh.

An anonymous official of the Indian army's Northern Command told AFP: "We now have a good strength present in the area."

Tashi Chhepal, a retired Indian army captain who has served in the area and is based in Leh, said the mobilisation was unprecedented in a sensitive region touching Pakistan as well as China.

Chhepal said: "I haven't seen this kind of military movement before."

After the latest round of talks between military commanders on Monday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said the two sides had ";agreed to take necessary measures to promote a cooling of the situation."

However, similar comments have been made in the past, which then were followed by battles in Galwan.

The two countries fought a border war in 1962, but this month's fighting was their deadliest encounter in 53 years.

DISPUTED REIGON

According to Indian military sources, Chinese troops ambushed Indian soldiers and forced them down a ridge where they had gone to remove a Chinese "encroachment."

A bilateral accord prevents the use of guns, but the fighting was still fierce, reportedly with rocks and batons wrapped with barbed wire.

An Indian federal minister earlier this week claimed 40 Chinese soldiers were killed in the Galwan Valley clash - but China has not released any information about their casualties.

China has, in turn, accused Indian soldiers of twice crossing the Line of Actual Control, the unofficial boundary, provoking its troops.

Bloody violence has erupted between the two nuclear-armed states for years over the heavily contested border region.

India and China have blamed one another for the violence, which left the world waiting for talks to play out to avoid World War 3.

China has laid claim to the entire Galwan Valley, saying the whole area is located on their side of the LAC.

Foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said: "Right and wrong is very clear and the responsibility entirely lies with the Indian side."

India has dismissed China's claim over the valley as "exaggerated" and "untenable" - and said it goes against talks held between the two sides held before the clash.