Why are opposite X-M-X angles not counted in MX6 octahedral geometry?

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mooncrater
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Homework Statement


The question says:
Find the number of X-M-X angles in MX6, which has an octahedral geometry.

Homework Equations


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The Attempt at a Solution


To do this question , I used p&c .
Since there are 6 X in MX6 and we have to choose two of them . Therefore total number of M-X-M bonds will be 6C2=15.
But the solution says that it is 12. When I saw it , I noticed that they had missed the opposite M-X-M bonds. So why had they(the solution makers) not counted those bonds? Are they wrong here ?
 
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I can't think of a good answer to your question. We typically speak only about angles between adjacent bonds, but technically counting angles between non-adjacent bonds is not a mistake if the question is worded just "count angles between bonds".
 
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