India, China likely to hold joint army exercise next month

India and China are likely to hold a joint "Hand-in-Hand" army exercise next month in Pune that will focus on counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism tactics, weeks after a stand-off between their troops in along the border in Ladakh region. "Hand-in-Hand" is an exercise aimed at exploring useful experiences, advancing pragmatic cooperation and promoting a friendly environment between the two armies.

The first such annual exercise was held at Kunming in China in December 2007 while the second was held at Belgaum in December 2008. However, there was a gap of five years till an exercise was held in China's Chengdu area last year. While final dates for the exercise are yet to finalised, Army sources say it could be held mid-next month in Pune.

Last year, a group of 160 personnel from Indian Army's 16 Sikh Light Infantry had visited China. The exercise comes just weeks after a stand-off between its forces at the border.