On Thursday, October 31, in an oddly lighthearted scene, Chinese and Indian soldiers, having been stationed in a tense standoff in the Himalayas for the past four years, exchanged candy at several points along the border in celebration of Diwali. This demonstration of friendliness followed the border agreement announced by India on October 2.

With a magnitude of 7.8, and its aftershocks reaching 7.5, the quake has claimed at least 35,000 lives and laid waste to urban settlements and heritage sites alike, with many thousands still trapped under the rubble.

A Chinese spy balloon, so-called because it was capable of collecting communications signals according to the US State Department, was shot down by a United States Air Force F-22 fi ghter jet on February 4 over the Atlantic Ocean.