At 14,000 feet above sea level, under the cold silence of the Himalayas, a new fortress is rising. Satellite images reveal China constructing a sprawling air-defence complex, complete with radar domes, missile bays, and command centres, barely a hundred kilometres from where Indian and Chinese troops clashed in 2020.
But behind this high-altitude build-up lies more than just military muscle. It’s unfolding at a time when India and China are reopening trade routes, restoring direct flights, and extending handshakes in diplomatic halls. The question is, what does this latest construction really signal: renewed defence, or renewed distrust?
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The Fortress Beneath the Clouds
At first glance, the Pangong terrain looks empty, a barren, icy expanse of rock and lake. But look closer, and the patterns emerge: newly paved roads winding up the slopes, geometric concrete pads, metallic shadows of radar arrays, and most telling
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