Old travel vlog misrepresented as Chinese, Pakistani soldiers 'celebrating victory' over India

Published on May 23, 2025 at 11:14
3 min read
By Raevathi SUPRAMANIAM, AFP Malaysia

An old video of Pakistani and Chinese soldiers dancing together at a border crossing circulated widely online after days of intense fighting between New Delhi and Islamabad in May, with users claiming they were "celebrating" the downing of an Indian jet. The clip is taken from a travel vlog uploaded to YouTube in 2018, years before the recent conflict.

The clip was shared May 14, 2025 on Facebook with the caption: "Chinese soldiers and Pakistani soldiers patrolling the Pakistan-China border met and danced to celebrate after Pakistan successfully shot down an Indian fighter jet."

The 55-second video appears to be shot from the window of a moving vehicle and shows soldiers with guns dancing in a circle.

Screenshot of the false post taken May 21, 2025

The video spread in other Malay-language posts on Facebook and TikTok, as well as in Pakistan, Indonesia and Vietnam.

The posts surfaced after a May 10 ceasefire ended four days of intense fighting between India and Pakistan that killed 70 people on both sides (archived link).

The latest conflict between the nuclear-armed rivals was triggered by an April attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir, which New Delhi blamed on Islamabad. Pakistan denies the charge.

Pakistan's military has claimed it downed five Indian warplanes on the first day of fighting -- including three French-made Rafale fighter jets -- though New Delhi has not confirmed any losses (archived link).

However, the video was first shared online in 2018 -- predating the latest India-Pakistan conflict.

A keyword search on YouTube led to a shorter version of the clip posted by the account Travel with Qasim on November 15, 2018 with the title: "Pakistani and Chinese Border Guard Troops dancing at Khunjerab Pass Pakistan-China Border Gate" (archived link).

An advanced keyword search on Google found a longer YouTube video posted by Jojo Aigner on October 26, 2018 with the title: "Pakistani And Chinese Soldiers Dancing Together" (archived link).

The circulating clip corresponds to the YouTube video's 8:45 mark. A sign reading "long live China-Pakistan friendship" is taped to the window of a vehicle in the background.

Screenshot comparison of the video in the false post (L) and the 2018 travel vlog

"I am trying to Hitchhike Around The Globe," the caption on Aigner's video says. "From Turkey I will travel East over Iran, Pakistan and China to South-East-Asia from where I will try to hitch a ship over the Pacific."

AFP geolocated the clip to Khunjerab Pass, which connects Pakistan and China (archived link).

Screenshots from Aigner's YouTube video (L) and Google Maps Street View, with elements highlighted by AFP

AFP contacted Aigner for comment, but a response was not forthcoming.

AFP has debunked other misinformation stemming from the conflict between India and Pakistan here.

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