(230429) -- KHUNJERAB, April 29, 2023 (Xinhua) -- Soldiers read books in a reading room at the barrack in Khunjerab, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, April 13, 2023. Gao Guanghui, a recruit who had just joined the army for 7 months, was shocked when he walked into the honor room of the border defense regiment in Khunjerab, northwest?China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The regiment is based on the Pamirs, guarding the China-Pakistan border and Khunjerab Port. With an average altitude of 4,700 meters, the place is a "forbidden zone" for many people, as the temperatur
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Xinhua / Alamy Stock PhotoImage ID:
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3500 x 2179 px | 29.6 x 18.4 cm | 11.7 x 7.3 inches | 300dpiDate taken:
29 April 2023Photographer:
XinhuaMore information:
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(230429) -- KHUNJERAB, April 29, 2023 (Xinhua) -- Soldiers read books in a reading room at the barrack in Khunjerab, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, April 13, 2023. Gao Guanghui, a recruit who had just joined the army for 7 months, was shocked when he walked into the honor room of the border defense regiment in Khunjerab, northwest?China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The regiment is based on the Pamirs, guarding the China-Pakistan border and Khunjerab Port. With an average altitude of 4, 700 meters, the place is a "forbidden zone" for many people, as the temperature here can drop to as low as minus 40 degrees Celsius, and the oxygen content is less than half of that in the plain area. Gao felt even more excited when he was on patrol with his squad leader Zhou Linping to the national border for the first time and renewed the boundary monument. "We are in a troop with glorious history. Now it's on you, " Zhou said to Gao. Zhou, a veteran who had been in the regiment for 16 years, had mixed feelings when saying this as he is going to retire at the end of the year. "When I first came here 16 years ago, life was so hard, " Zhou recalled. The facilities in the barracks were poor and due to the lack of transportation means, vegetables could only be sent to the top of the mountains once a month. "So we had very few choices except for potatoes, Chinese cabbages and onions, only because they are easier to store." Other than this, the soldiers only had one generator, which could only provide electricity at night. There was no access to mobile phone signals at all. Now, everything is different. New barracks have been built up with a basketball court, a gym, a library and a diffuse oxygen supply system, which allow soldiers to breathe more smoothly. With the greenhouse, soldiers can not only be supplied with fresh vegetables and fruits, but also have the chance to taste tropical fruits like mangosteen and mango on the snowy plateau. In a