MORE: Austin already linked to the latest China-India border clash, but it’s both less and more than it seems. Yes, there was some fighting, but it was more of a playground scuffle than a deadly clash of mechanized forces:

PTI quoted army officials as saying that in the latest confrontation, soldiers had to form a human chain to prevent an incursion by Chinese forces into territories claimed by India and located near the country’s Ladakh region. China claims the territories as its own.

An Indian official told the BBC that he could neither confirm nor deny media reports, but said “such incidents do happen,” adding that “this isn’t the first time that something like this has happened.”

Indeed. The two countries fought a monthlong border war in 1962, back before either country had the logistical wherewithal to do too much damage to each other in such a remote region. China won that war, but not decisively. Almost 60 years later, both sides still occupy bits of land claimed by the other in the Sino-Indian borderland. But in recent years China has been working to gain a strategic advantage in the highlands, building new roads and rail lines through Tibet, and also prepositioning military hardware.

So this week’s scuffle might just be a preview of a bigger and badder sequel to the ’62 war.