New Delhi: The Indian Army on Monday issued a joint statement on the 12th round of the India-China Corps Commander level meeting which was held on the Indian side on July 31 at the Chushul-Moldo border meeting point.
The aim of the meeting was to reach an agreement for the next phase of disengagement at Hot Springs, Gogra and other remaining friction points in eastern Ladakh.
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“The two sides had a frank and in-depth exchange of views on the resolution of the remaining areas related to the disintegration along the Line of Actual Control in the western sector of the India-China border areas. Both sides noted that this round of the meeting was constructive. , Which further enhanced mutual understanding,” the army wrote in a statement.
It said both sides agreed to expeditiously resolve these remaining issues in accordance with existing agreements and protocols and to maintain the pace of dialogue and negotiations.
“The two sides also agreed that in the interim they will continue their effective efforts to ensure stability along the LAC in the western region and jointly maintain peace and tranquility,” the statement said.
Indian and Chinese armies have described the 12th round of military talks on the eastern Ladakh row as “constructive”, while the remaining friction points were showing no concrete results on the much-awaited disengagement process.
The Indian delegation was led by Leh-based XIV Corps chief Lt Gen PGK Menon and Additional Secretary (East Asia) in the Ministry of External Affairs Naveen Srivastava. The Chinese military delegation, on the other hand, was led by Xu Qing, commander of the PLA’s Western Theater Command, who was appointed earlier this month.
The talks started at 10:30 am and ended at 7:30 pm.
Previous developments in India-China talks
India has been emphasizing that the resolution of outstanding issues including Depsang, Hot Springs and Gogra is essential for overall relations between the two countries.
The 12th round of talks took place after a gap of three and a half months as the 11th round of military talks took place on April 9 at the Chushul border point on the Indian side of the LAC and lasted for about 13 hours.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar strongly conveyed to his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi that the prolongation of the 14-month standoff and the current situation in eastern Ladakh is impacting bilateral ties “in a negative way”.
The two foreign ministers had a one-hour bilateral meeting on the sidelines of a Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in the Tajik capital city of Dushanbe on July 14.
In the meeting, EAM Jaishankar stressed that any unilateral change in status quo along the LAC was “not acceptable” to India and that overall relations could develop only after complete restoration of peace and tranquility in eastern Ladakh.
In military talks held in April, the two sides discussed ways to advance the demilitarization process in Hot Springs, Gogra and Depsang, with the larger aim of de-escalating tensions in the region. But after that there was no further movement in the dissolution process.
The border standoff between India and China began in May last year after violent clashes in the Pangong Lake areas and both sides gradually increased their deployment of thousands of troops as well as heavy weapons.
To resolve tensions on the border, a series of military and diplomatic talks have been held by the two sides since they completed an agreement in February to withdraw troops and arms from the north and south banks of Pangong Lake.
At present, each side has around 50,000 to 60,000 troops along the LAC in the sensitive area.
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