No, China Did Not Use Microwave Weapons In Ladakh; Here's The Truth

PIB has dismissed claims by International media that Chinese troops used microwave weapons in Ladakh. Know what they are and why reports in international media are false.

(File Photo/ AFP)

New Delhi: Press Information Bureau (PIB) refuted reports by international news portals like ‘The Times’ which stated that the Chinese troops used microwave weapons against Indian troops during the standoff in Ladakh at the Line of Actual Control. In a tweet, the PIB said “Some international news portals have published misleading headlines and reported baseless claims related to India-China border stand-off in Ladakh' a with the picture of ‘The Times’ report and ‘The Australian’ tweet and clarified that the claims are not true. The report PIB is referring to is The Times report which stated “Chinese forces had turned two strategic hilltops that had been occupied by Indian soldiers ‘into a microwave oven’, forcing them to retreat and allowing the positions to be retaken without an exchange of conventional fire, according to Jin Canrong, a professor of international relations at Beijing-based Renmin University.

Some international news portals have published misleading headlines and reported baseless claims related to India-China border stand-off in Ladakh. #PIBFactCheck: This claim is #Fake. @adgpi has clarified that no such incident has taken place. Beware of such #misinformation. pic.twitter.com/EoH4CH3X13

— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) November 17, 2020

The report mostly quotes Jin Canrong, who is a professor of international relations but Jin Canrong doesn’t provide any information about his sources or how he came to know about the microwave weapons. Jin Canrong was quoted saying “We didn’t publicise it because we solved the problem beautifully,” Jin said. “They [India] didn’t publicise it, either, because they lost so miserably.” What are microwave weapons? Microwave weapons or Direct Energy Weapons are ranged weapons that are believed to disable attackers and conduct psychological warfare. According to experts, these weapons may have caused the symptoms and ailments that hit over three dozen American diplomats and their families in Cuba and China in 2016 and 2018. India’s Defense Research and Development Organisation had announced in September that it planned to develop directed energy weapons or DEWs that employ high-energy lasers and microwaves. The national programme is likely to comprise of short, medium, and long-term goals, with an end goal of developing the weapon variants of up to 100kW, The Times of India reported in September. India and China have been engaged in a heavy military standoff for over six months now with China moving 60,000 troops on the Indian border after India also acted swiftly and deployed an almost equal number of troops on its side to prevent any further misadventure by China. After the Chinese transgressed into multiple locations in India, the Indian side also made its move on August 29-30 to occupy heights in the Northern and Southern Pangong lake area. Earlier this month, both sides held the eight rounds of Corps Commander talks.  A three-point proposal was made and the Chinese army agreed to go past finger number 8. Apart from this, both countries can withdraw tanks and cannons from the Chushul-Moldo sector. Watch Here: