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India
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India, US hold military exercises near disputed China border

  • The drills took place in the northern state of Uttarakhand, about 100km from the Line of Actual Control that separates Chinese and Indian territories
  • India and the United States have ramped up their military relationship in recent years, driven by a convergence of interests to counter China

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A helicopter carrying Indian soldiers takes off during the US-India “Yudh Abhyas” joint military exercise held in Uttarakhand state on Tuesday. Photo: AP
Associated Press
Indian and US troops have held a high-altitude training exercise in cold, mountainous terrain near India’s disputed border with China, at a time both countries are trying to manage rising tensions with Beijing.

During the exercise on Tuesday, Indian soldiers were dropped from helicopters to flush out gunmen from a house in a demonstration of unarmed combat skills.

Other drills involved sniffer dogs and bomb-disposing vehicles, while trained kites were deployed to destroy small enemy drones.

“Overall, it has been a great learning experience. There has been sharing of best practices between both the armies,” said Brigadier Pankaj Verma of the Indian Army.

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US joins high-altitude military exercise with India near its Himalayan border with China

US joins high-altitude military exercise with India near its Himalayan border with China

The annual drills took part around Auli, a hill station in the northern state of Uttarakhand. The US troops came from the 2nd Brigade of the 11th Airborne Division, and their Indian counterparts were members of the army’s Assam Regiment.

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