New Delhi: Dubbing as “shameful” China’s decision to make an army officer, who was injured during the border skirmish with the Indian troops in the Galwan Valley, the Beijing Winter Olympics' torchbearer, a top lawmaker from the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee has said Washington will continue to support Uyghur freedoms and the sovereignty of India.
“It's shameful that #Beijing chose a torchbearer for the #Olympics2022 who's part of the military command that attacked #India in 2020 and is implementing #genocide against the #Uyghurs. The U.S. will cont. to support #Uyghur freedoms & the sovereignty of India,” tweeted Jim Risch, US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member.
The comments came after China chose People’s Liberation Army (PLA) regiment commander Qi Fabao to carry the torch at this week’s Winter Olympics relay in Beijing.
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Qi Fabao, the regimental commander from the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Xinjiang military command, suffered a serious head injury during the Galwan Valley border skirmish on June 15, 2020.
Qi took the flame from Wang Meng, China's four-time Olympic short track speed skating champion, at Winter Olympic Park on Wednesday, The Global Times reported.
The Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics torch relay began earlier on Wednesday just a few days ahead of the opening of the international sporting event in the Chinese capital against a backdrop of diplomatic boycotts and the ongoing Covid-19 outbreaks, including in the host city.
The Beijing 2022 Organising Committee had shortened the relay route because of the Covid-19 pandemic and the number of torchbearers were also reduced.
The United States and several other western nations are staging a diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics, which opens on Friday, over human rights concerns relating to China’s treatment of Uyghurs in the Xinjiang region.