The People Liberation Army (PLA) has officially acknowledged for the first time that five Chinese military officials and soldiers were killed in last year’s Galwan valley clash with the Indian army in eastern Ladakh, reported PTI.

The PLA Daily, the official newspaper of the Chinese military, on Friday reported that the Central Military Commission of China (CMC), the high command of PLA, has recognised that five soldiers stationed at the Karakoram Mountains died in the border confrontation with India in June 2020.

CMC also announced posthumous gallantry awards to Qi Fabao, the regimental commander from the PLA Xinjiang Military Command, the title of "Hero regimental commander for defending the border," Chen Hongjun with "Hero to defend the border," and awarded the first-class merit to Chen Xiangrong, Xiao Siyuan, and Wang Zhuoran.

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The border standoff between the Indian and Chinese militaries erupted on May 5 last year following a violent clash in the Pangong Lake areas and both sides gradually enhanced their deployment by rushing in tens of thousands of soldiers as well as heavy weaponry.

Twenty Indian soldiers were killed in the fierce hand-to-hand combat on June 15 in Galwan Valley, an incident that marked the most serious military conflicts between the two sides in decades.

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While India has announced the casualties immediately after the incident, China did not officially acknowledge the casualties until Friday.

The admission of the casualties by the PLA coincides with the disengagement of troops by both sides at the North and South banks of the Pangong Lake, the most contentious part of the standoff which began in May last year.

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(With inputs from PTI)