India will not participate in the opening ceremony of the Beijing Winter Olympics. The government announced the decision after learning that the torch bearer would be a Chinese soldier involved in a clash with the Indian army.
With our correspondent in Bangalore, Como Bastin
Not even lit, the Olympic flame brings back frozen memories, those of June 2020. The Indian and Chinese armies then clashed along their Himalayan border. Twenty Indian soldiers were killed there.
New Delhi therefore jumped on discovering that the torch bearer would be a commander of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who participated in this deadly skirmish.
India’s Foreign Ministry said ” regrettable that China politicizes the Olympics “. Across the Atlantic too, US Senator Jim Risch, member of the Foreign Relations Committee, judged this choice “ shameful “.
No retransmission of the tests
Consequently, Indian diplomacy will boycott the opening and closing ceremony of the Beijing Olympics. It thus joins the position of United StatesNew Zealand, Australia, Canada and UK. In addition, the Indian public television channel Doordarshan will not broadcast the events.
In recent months, China has paid tribute to the soldiers involved in the June 2020 clashes, for which it blames India. The day before this Olympic controversy, the Australian magazine The Klaxon questioned the official toll of five dead on the Chinese side.
► Also to listen: In China, the Winter Olympics under close surveillance