President Xi Promotes PLA Commander Overseeing India’s Border to General
Chinese President Xi Jinping has promoted Xu Qiling, the commander of the People’s Liberation Army’s Western Theater Command, to a general, which oversees the borders with India, amid the ongoing standoff along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh. is.
Xi, who is also the chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) – the PLA’s overall high command, promoted 58-year-old Xu to the rank of general – the highest rank for officers in active service in China.
Other officers who were promoted to the rank of general include Southern Theater Command Commander Wang Xiubin, PLA Army Commander Liu Genli and PLA Strategic Assistance (Missile) Force Commander Xu Qiansheng, reported state-run Xinhua news agency. . .
Xi presented certificates of the orders he had signed at a ceremony organized by the CMC in Beijing on Monday.
Xu, who previously held the rank of lieutenant general, was appointed head of the Western Theater Command Ground in June last year.
The Xinhua news agency has described Xu as the commander of the PLA’s Western Theater Command in its report.
Considered a rising star in the PLA, Xu was one of the young generals promoted by Xi after taking over the PLA in late 2012.
India and China were locked in a military standoff at several friction points in eastern Ladakh since early May last year.
However, the two sides completed the withdrawal of troops and weapons from the north and south shores of Pangong Lake in February after a series of military and diplomatic talks.
Both sides are now engaged in talks to extend the process of separation to the remaining friction points.
India has been pressing for the withdrawal of troops, particularly at Hot Springs, Gogra and Depsang. According to military officials, each side currently has around 50,000 to 60,000 troops along the LAC in the sensitive high altitude area.
The remaining friction points did not see any further momentum in the withdrawal of troops as the Chinese side did not show flexibility in its approach on the issue in the 11th round of military talks.
On June 25, India and China held a virtual meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on Border Affairs (WMCC) during which they would like to organize the next round of military talks at the earliest to achieve the objective of complete disengagement. Agreed on remaining friction point in eastern Ladakh.
According to a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the two sides held a “clear exchange” of views and agreed to reach a mutually acceptable solution for the withdrawal of troops at all friction points to enable progress in the overall relationship. decided to continue the talks) in New Delhi.
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