New Delhi: The situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh remains “very fragile” and “quite dangerous” in the military assessment, as substantial progress has been made despite close deployment of troops by both sides in some areas. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Saturday that the process of disengagement in many areas. Jaishankar also said that he and former Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had reached an agreement in principle in September 2020 on how to resolve the issue and it was for China to fulfill what was agreed upon.
In an interactive session at the India Today Conclave, the External Affairs Minister also made it clear that relations between the two countries cannot normalize until “these problems” are resolved.
Indian and Chinese troops are locked in a standoff for the past three years at some friction points in eastern Ladakh, even as both sides have completed the withdrawal of troops from several areas after extensive diplomatic and military talks.
“This is a very, I would say, challenging and unusual phase in our relations with China. I say this because since 1988 Rajiv Gandhi went there and till 2020 there was an understanding that there would be peace and tranquility on the border.” Jaishankar said.
The external affairs minister also referred to the agreements between the two sides not to bring large forces to the border, adding a “very specific” set of understandings and even protocols to deal with different situations.
Jaishankar said that China violated agreements in 2020 and its consequences were seen in Galwan Valley and other areas as well.
“We have deployed our troops, we have stood our ground and to my mind the situation still remains very critical because there are places where our deployments are very close and in military assessment are actually quite dangerous,” he said. ”
“We have made great progress when it comes to disengagement in many areas. There are many areas that we are discussing. It is a painstaking task and we will do it,” he said.
Jaishankar said, “We have made it clear to the Chinese that we cannot disturb the peace, you cannot violate agreements and then want the rest of the relationship to continue as if nothing happened. This is not sustainable.” ” ,
The minister’s remarks came a day after Army Chief General Manoj Pandey said that the situation at the LAC is stable but needs to be “very closely monitored”.
In her remarks, the External Affairs Minister also referred to her meeting with her new Chinese counterpart Qin Gang on March 2 on the sidelines of the G20 Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Delhi.
“My most recent meeting in this regard was with the new Foreign Minister Qin Gang when the G20 foreign ministers met and we had a long discussion about it. In September 2020, Wang Yi and I reached an agreement in principle was how to solve it. So the Chinese have to fulfill what was agreed upon and they have fought for it,” he said.
Asked why the Chinese side was struggling to give results, Jaishankar said the question should be put to the Chinese side.
“That’s a question you need to ask them. I can’t answer it. Because, to me, it’s pretty clear cut. We won’t get back to a normal relationship until these problems are resolved.” . I want to make it very clear.” ,” They said.
On February 22, India and China held diplomatic talks in person in Beijing and discussed proposals to disengage in an “open and constructive manner” from the remaining friction points along the LAC in eastern Ladakh.
The meeting took place under the framework of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC).
The standoff on the eastern Ladakh border started on May 5, 2020 after a violent clash in the Pangong Lake area.
Relations between the two countries took a nosedive after the fierce clashes in the Galwan Valley in June 2020, which marked the most serious military conflict between the two sides in decades.
As a result of a series of military and diplomatic talks, the two sides completed the disengagement process in 2021 on the north and south banks of Pangong Lake and in the Gogra area.