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Tag: India china talks

  • India, China to hold 15th round of border talks on Friday

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: India and China will hold the 15th round of high-level military talks on Friday to resolve issues related to remaining friction areas in eastern Ladakh, sources in the defence establishment said on Tuesday.

    The talks till now have resulted in the resolution of issues in the North and South Bank of Pangong Tso, Galwan and Gogra Hot Spring areas. There was, however, no fresh breakthrough in the 14th round of the dialogue that took place on January 12 this year.

    The two sides will hold the next round at the Chushul Moldo meeting point in Ladakh on Friday to end the 22-month standoff at the remaining friction areas, according to the sources.

    Recent statements by both sides to find a mutually acceptable solution have been encouraging and positive in nature, they noted.

    The eastern Ladakh border standoff between the Indian and Chinese militaries erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong lake area.

    Both sides gradually enhanced their deployment by rushing in tens of thousands of soldiers as well as heavy weaponry.

  • India, China agreed to stay in close contact to work out mutually acceptable resolution: MEA

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: India and China agreed at the previous round of Corps Commander-level talks to stay in close contact and maintain dialogue via military and diplomatic channels to work out a mutually acceptable resolution of the remaining issues related to the LAC in the western sector at the earliest, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Friday.

    Asked about the border standoff with China, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said, “As you are aware, the 14th round of India-China Corps Commander level meeting was held on January 12 this year. The two sides agreed that resolution of the remaining issues at the earliest would help in the restoration of peace and tranquillity along the LAC in the western sector and enable progress in bilateral relations.”

    “The two sides agreed to stay in close contact and maintain dialogue via military and diplomatic channels and work out a mutually acceptable resolution of the remaining issues at the earliest,” he said.

    In this context it was also agreed that the next round of the commanders level talks should be held at the earliest, Bagchi added.

    The eastern Ladakh border standoff between the Indian and Chinese militaries erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong lake area.

    Both sides gradually enhanced their deployment by rushing in tens of thousands of soldiers as well as heavy weaponry.

    As a result of a series of military and diplomatic talks, the two sides completed the disengagement process last year in the north and south banks of the Pangong lake and in the Gogra area.

    Each side currently has around 50,000 to 60,000 troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the sensitive sector.

  • India, China agree to hold next round of military talks soon

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: India and China on Thursday agreed to hold the 14th round of military talks at an early date to achieve the objective of complete disengagement in remaining friction points along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.

    At a virtual meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) on border affairs, the two sides had “candid and in-depth” discussions on the situation and reviewed the developments since the last military talks on October 10, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

    Apart from agreeing to hold the next round of military talks, there were no signs of any major outcome from the meeting.

    The MEA said the two sides agreed on the need to find an early resolution to the remaining issues while fully abiding by bilateral agreements and protocols so as to restore peace and tranquillity.

    In a statement, the MEA said it was also agreed that both sides should continue to ensure a stable ground situation and avoid any untoward incident.

    “It was agreed that both sides should hold the next (14th) round of the Senior Commanders meeting at an early date to achieve the objective of complete disengagement from all the friction points along the LAC in the Western Sector in accordance with the existing bilateral agreements and protocols,” it said.

    The eastern Ladakh is officially referred to as Western Sector.

    The last round of military talks on October 10 ended in a stalemate following which both sides blamed each other for the impasse.

    In a strong statement after the 13th round of talks, the Indian Army said the “constructive suggestions” made by it at the negotiations were neither agreeable to the Chinese side nor could Beijing provide any “forward-looking” proposals.

    In its statement, the MEA also referred to the “agreement” between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi during their meeting in September in Dushanbe that the military and diplomatic officials of the two sides should continue discussions to resolve the remaining issues in eastern Ladakh.

    “Accordingly, the two sides had candid and in-depth discussions on the situation along the LAC in Western Sector of India-China border areas and also reviewed the developments since the last meeting of the Senior Commanders of both sides which was held on October 10,” it said.

    The Chinese foreign ministry said the two sides will continue to work hard to further ease the border situation and strive to “shift from emergency response to normalised control as soon as possible.

    ” In a statement, it said the two sides had a candid and in-depth exchange of views on the recent situation in the China-India border areas at the meeting.

    The Chinese foreign ministry said the two sides agreed to consolidate the existing achievements of disengagement, strictly abide by the agreements signed by the two sides and the relevant consensus reached so as to avoid recurrence of the situation on the ground.

    “The two sides agreed to maintain dialogue and communication through diplomatic and military channels, actively prepare for the 14th round of military commander-level talks, and make efforts to resolve the remaining issues in the western section of the Sino-Indian border,” it said.

    Jaishankar and Wang held the talks in Tajikistan’s capital Dushanbe on the sidelines of the SCO summit.

    The eastern Ladakh border standoff between the Indian and Chinese militaries erupted on May 5 last year following a violent clash in the Pangong lake areas and both sides gradually enhanced their deployment by rushing in tens of thousands of soldiers as well as heavy weaponry.

    The tension escalated following a deadly clash in Galwan Valley on June 15 last year.

    As a result of a series of military and diplomatic talks, the two sides completed the disengagement process in the north and south banks of the Pangong lake in February and in the Gogra area in August.

    Each side currently has around 50,000 to 60,000 troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the sensitive sector.

  • Expect China to work towards early resolution of remaining issues on LAC in eastern Ladakh, says India

    By ANI

    NEW DELHI: India had put forward constructive suggestions during the 13th commander-level talks but the Chinese side was not agreeable, External Affairs Ministry said on Thursday and noted that the two sides have agreed to “maintain communications and to maintain stability on the ground”.

    External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said during the weekly media briefing that India expects the Chinese side to work towards early resolution of all the remaining issues on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.

    He also said that resolution of the remaining areas and restoration of peace and tranquillity would facilitate progress in overall bilateral relations.

    “We had put forward constructive suggestions during the 13th round of the India-China Corps Commander-level meeting, for resolving the remaining areas but the Chinese side was not agreeable. I would not like to characterise it any particular way except to say that two sides have agreed to maintain communications, and to maintain stability on the ground,” he said.

    Bagchi said that the two sides have had some progress in terms of disengagement from various areas in the past.

    He also referred to the meeting between Indian and Chinese Foreign Ministers at Dushanbe and said they had agreed that the “remaining areas should be resolved”.

    “We expect the Chinese side to work towards early resolution of all the remaining issues on the LAC in eastern Ladakh, while fully abiding by bilateral agreements and protocols,” he said.

    “And let me reiterate again that resolution of the remaining areas and restoration of peace and tranquillity would facilitate progress in our overall bilateral relations. We look forward to continuing to engage with China on this,” he added.

    The 13th round of the India-China Corps Commander-level meeting was held at the Chushul-Moldo border meeting point on October 10.

    Answering a query related to China’s opposition to the visit of Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu to Arunachal Pradesh, Bagchi reiterated that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral and inalienable part of India and the Indian leaders can routinely travel there “as they do to any other state of India”.

    Naidu visited Arunachal Pradesh on October 9 and addressed a special session of the state assembly.

  • Eastern Ladakh standoff: India, China to hold 13th round of military talks on October 10

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: India and China will hold another round of high-level military talks on Sunday with a focus on making some forward movement in the disengagement process in the remaining friction points in eastern Ladakh, government sources said.

    The talks are scheduled to start at 10:30 AM at the Moldo border point on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, the sources said on Saturday.

    The Indian side is expected to seek disengagement as soon as possible in the remaining friction points besides pressing for resolution of issues in Depsang Bulge and Demchok.

    The 12th round of talks had taken place on July 31.

    Days after the talks, the two armies completed the disengagement process in Gogra, which was seen as a significant forward movement towards the restoration of peace and tranquillity in the region.

    The 13th round of talks is taking place in the backdrop of two recent incidents of attempted transgressions by the Chinese troops — one in the Barahoti sector of Uttarakhand and another in the Tawang sector in Arunachal Pradesh.

    Indian and Chinese troops were engaged in a brief face-off near Yangtse in the Tawang sector of Arunachal Pradesh last week and it was resolved within few hours following talks between commanders of the two sides as per established protocols, people familiar with the development said on Friday.

    Last month, close to 100 soldiers of China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) transgressed the LAC in the Barahoti sector.

    The transgression took place on August 30, and the Chinese troops returned from the area after spending few hours.

    Chief of Army Staff Gen MM Naravne on Saturday said the military build-up by China in the eastern Ladakh region and new infrastructure development to sustain the large-scale deployment are a matter of concern.

    He also said if the Chinese military maintains the deployment through the second winter, then it may lead to an LoC-like situation (Line of Control) though not an active LoC as is there on the western front with Pakistan.

    The Indian delegation at Sunday’s talks is to be led by Lt Gen PGK Menon, the Commander of the Leh-based 14 Corps.

    The border standoff between the Indian and Chinese militaries erupted on May 5 last year following a violent clash in the Pangong lake areas and both sides gradually enhanced their deployment by rushing in tens of thousands of soldiers as well as heavy weaponry.

    As a result of a series of military and diplomatic talks, the two sides completed the disengagement process in the Gogra area in August.

    In February, the two sides completed the withdrawal of troops and weapons from the north and south banks of the Pangong lake in line with an agreement on disengagement.

    Each side currently has around 50,000 to 60,000 troops along the LAC in the sensitive sector.

  • India wants solution to border dispute with China through dialogue: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh

    By PTI

    CHANDIGARH: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Monday that India wants a solution to the border dispute with China through dialogue and asserted that the government would never allow the sanctity of borders to be violated.

    The Modi government has made it clear to the forces that any unilateral action on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) should not be ignored, he said. Singh was delivering virtually the third Balramji Dass Tandon Memorial Lecture organised by Panjab University on the issue of national security.

    The defence minister said that there have been “perception differences” on the border with China. “Despite this, there are some agreements, protocols which the armies of both countries follow to conduct patrols,” he said.

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    Referring to the clashes in eastern Ladakh last year, Singh said Chinese forces had ignored the “agreed protocols”. “We cannot allow the Chinese Army PLA to act on the LAC in a unilateral manner under any circumstances. That is what the Indian Army did that day in Galwan and bravely confronted the PLA soldiers and forced them to retreat,” he said while terming it as a “historic” incident.

    India wants a solution to the border dispute with China through dialogue, the defence minister said and asserted that the government will never compromise on issues of the “country’s borders, its honour and self-respect”. “We will never allow the sanctity of borders to be violated,” he said.

    Recalling the Galwan incident, he said the bravery, valour and restraint shown by the Indian Army are incomparable and unparalleled.

    In the first deadly clash in the border area in nearly five decades, 20 Indian soldiers were killed on June 15 last year in the Galwan Valley in fierce hand-to-hand combat with Chinese troops, triggering a large deployment of troops and heavy weaponry by both armies at the friction points in eastern Ladakh.

    In February, China officially acknowledged that five Chinese military officers and soldiers were killed in the clashes with the Indian Army though it is widely believed that the death toll was higher.

    In a significant forward movement towards the restoration of peace and tranquility in the region, the Indian and Chinese armies completed the disengagement process and restored the pre-standoff ground position in Gogra in eastern Ladakh after 15 months.

    The development came after the 12th round of military talks between the two sides on July 31 at the Chushul-Moldo meeting point in eastern Ladakh. Earlier, the Indian and Chinese frontline troops had conducted the first synchronised disengagement at the south and north banks of the Pangong lake in February.

    The Army is trained to press the trigger on seeing the movement of the enemy, but the Indian Army has shown both courage and restraint while working with great maturity, Rajnath Singh said. He said despite this, questions were raised by some opposition leaders on the Army’s capability.

    The defence minister said India has learnt a lot from the 1962 war against China. On improving infrastructure, he said that the Atal Tunnel project in Rohtang, which was on hold for a long time, was completed by the Modi government. “This tunnel has strategic importance,” he said.

    The Border Roads Organisation is developing infrastructure projects and all-weather connectivity was being given to Ladakh, he said, adding work on several alternative roads has started. The minister said it will also help the people who live in border areas as these people have “strategic importance for us”. “Keeping their interests in mind, it is necessary to strengthen the border infrastructure,” he said.

    Referring to the situation in the Northeast, the minister said an era of peace has come in this region in the last seven years.

    There was a time when the entire region was in the grip of insurgency, he said and dubbed the restoration of peace in the Northeast as the “biggest strategic victory” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s tenure.

    The minister said the government has succeeded in controlling Left Wing Extremism as well in the last seven years. When the BJP government was formed in 2014, as many as 160 districts were facing the Naxal problem, while this number reduced to 50 in 2019.

  • 12th round of Sino-India military talks to be held on Saturday; India hopes for forward movement

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The 12th round of high-level military talks between India and China will take place on Saturday with a focus on achieving some forward movement in the disengagement in the remaining friction points in eastern Ladakh, sources in the military establishment said.

    The fresh round of Corps Commander talks are scheduled to start at 10:30 AM at Moldo border point on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, they added. Sources said that the main focus of the talks will be on addressing outstanding problems in Hot Springs and Gogra.

    The latest round of talks will take place after a gap of more than three and a half months. The 11th round of talks had taken place on April 9 at the Chushul border point on the Indian side of the LAC. India and China have been locked in a military standoff at multiple friction points in eastern Ladakh since early May last year.

    The two sides completed the withdrawal of troops and weapons from the North and South banks of Pangong lake in February following a series of military and diplomatic talks. There was no visible forward movement in disengagement of troops in the remaining friction points as the Chinese side did not show flexibility in their approach on it at the 11th round of military talks.

  • De-escalation, disengagement debate in Eastern Ladakh stalls Chinese-Indian Army talks

    Express News Service
    NEW DEHI: The standoff in Eastern Ladakh is stuck as Indian Army and Chinese People’s Liberation Army have differing approach on troop presence and their withdrawal from standoff points. There have been major parlays, at various levels to sort out the standoff. Also, this time the numbers of the contentious locations along the LAC in Ladakh have increased.

    An official aware of the developments told, “While Chinese PLA is pressing to de-escalate and then disengage, Indian Army has made it clear that unless the Chinese troops move back to the pre-May 5, 2020 positions India will not move its troops back.”

    The Chinese want Indian Army to move out all its soldiers which got deployed after the May 5, 2020 stand off which began with the clashes between the troops at Finger 4 on the north bank of Pangong Tso. It later spread out to multiple points including Hot Spring, Gogra, Galwan and Depsang.

    A distinct change this time is the increase of on ground friction positions which total to 17 such locations along the 832 kilometer long LAC in Ladakh.

    “Amidst the standoff there is an increase of five friction points which include area around Kilometer 120 in Galwan, PP 15 and PP 17A at Shoksha La on the North of the Pangong and Rechin La and Rezang La on the South of Pangong,” added the official.

    Before May 5, 2020 there were two Mutually Agreed Disputed Areas (Trig Heights and Demchok) and 10 Areas of Differing Perceptions at Samar Lungpa, Depsang Bulge, Areas east of Pt 6556, Crossing of Charding Nullah, Kongka La, Pangong Tso, Spanggur, Mt Sajjum, Dumchele and Chumar.

    With the rise in disputes, there has been increase in the communication between the PLA and the Indian Army in order to resolve the protracted tensions along the LAC which led to deadly duels in Galwan which claimed lives on both sides.

    Also, for the first time the Corps Commanders (Senior Higher Military Commander Level: SCML) from the two sides got involved to discuss the resolution of the standoff otherwise the Division Commanders (Higher Military Commander Level: HCML) were the highest-level officers resolving the ground situations.

    There have been frantic talks which used to be up to five hotline calls in a day. “There has been no gap in communication as there were 11 SCML, 10 HCML, 55 Delegation Level ( Sector Commander or Brigadier level) talks. The Hot Line talks in this period has been 1450 times.”

    The hotlines have been set-up at Daulet Beg Oldi (DBO) and Chushul in Ladakh. The last SCML or Corps Commander level talks were held on April 9 this year.

    Indian and Chinese Corps commanders plan to meet for the 12th Round within a fortnight to take ahead the disengagement process. “There are good chances that the two sides agree to disengage from Gogra and Hotspring,” said another official. But there is a trust deficit which will take time to regain and under the new Memorandum of Understandings and Agreements s the Chinese have broken all the past agreements told the officials.

    Amidst the talks the Chinese have been furtively building permanent structures on their side. “It reflects their intention as it is an important facto,” the officials remarked.

    India has also begun sprucing up its all-round logistics chains and the associated military infrastructure. India is also inducting new equipment. 

    There has been no attempt to reoccupy the positions which were vacated by the Indian sides and the Buffer Zones at various places still exist but it varies at different points.

    As for the troops, the Chinese were resorting to quick rotations at the heights. “The PLA rotated it troops from Rechin La and Rezang La in 10 days.”

    The Indian troops were better acclimatized but they also rotated troops with the frontline troops falling back in the habitat which have been made close to the frontline areas.

  • India, China agree to resolve stand-offs at Division Commanders Level

    Express News Service
    NEW DELHI: The ongoing military level processes to resolve palpable tensions along the Line of Actual Control in the Eastern Ladakh will change from now with the resolution talks to be held a level below the Corps Commanders.

    A senior Army Officer said, “The Chinese have agreed to discuss resolution of the standoff at Gogra, Hotspring at the Division Commanders level as they feel that things can get resolved at that level now.” The Corps Commanders talk in future will be held if the need arises, added the officer.

    On the issue of Galwan the officer did not respond. 15 June is the first anniversary of the day when in 2020 clashes had broken out between the troops of the Indian Army and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army leading to the death of 20 Indian Army soldiers including Colonel B. Santosh Babu and 4 Chinese soldiers the names of those were made public in February this year. Colonel Qi Fabao, the regimental commander from the PLA Xinjiang Military Command was seriously injured in the clash.

    There have been 21 rounds of diplomatic level talks under the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China border Affairs (WMCC) and 11 rounds of military dialogue between Indian XIV Corps Commander and PLA Commander of South Xinjiang military district.

    It was the TNIE which broke the story in May 2020 that clashes at the Finger 4 area on the Northern Bank of Pangong Tso Lake had led to a standoff which quickly expanded to Hot Spring, Gogra, Galwan and Demchok. Also, the Chinese blocked Indian patrolling parties to the Patrolling Points 10, 11, 11A, 12 and 13 as the PLA sat at the Y-Junction in the Depsang Area which is around 30 km from the strategic Indian airstrip of Daulat Beg Oldie (DBO).

    In a surprise move in the August end of 2020 Indian Army repositioned its troops occupying the heights in the South Bank of the 135 km long salt-lake Pangong Tso located at a height of around 14,000ft. This compromised the tenability of the Chinese Moldo Military Camp as the heights included the Rezang La and Reqin La, both dominating the Spanggur Gap. The heights also included those on the Kailash range like the Black Top, Helmet, Gurung Hill, Gorkha Hill and Magar Hill in addition to the others.  

    The two sides decided during the Ninth Corps Commanders talk to disengage their troops from the areas of the North and South banks of Pangong Tso which was completed by 11th February.

    “The steps taken have moved things forward.” Added the senior officer quoted above.

    “While the troops moved back which at places had the tanks within 30 feet distance with barrels pointed on each other but the Chinese have lodged them a little deeper.” Added the officer. There ais presence around 50,000 troops along with the tanks, artillery guns, and other equipment in the area. Also, India Army has a precautionary deployment all along the LAC.

    This standoff in the Eastern Ladakh is the first time that the resolution matrix has brought in the Senior Commanders or the Corps Commanders which on the Indian side is commanded by a Lieutenant General and a Major General on the Chinese Side. Otherwise, it used to get resolved at the Higher Commander Level Meeting which is held between the Major General rank officers of the two sides.

    The meetings between the two militaries are held at three levels at the borders which includes the Local Commander or the Colonel level, Station Commander (Delegation Level) or the Brigadier Level and the Highest is the Major General Level called the HLCM. These are emergency meetings which happen when something emergent is required to be discussed as otherwise there are scheduled meetings on important days apart from the meetings at fixed intervals.

    India and China have differing perceptions on the alignment of the 3488 km long LAC and over the years both sides had reached a series of agreements to maintain peace and tranquility along the LAC, while talks continued to reach a resolution.

  • Legacy issues need to be resolved through dialogue: Army Chief Gen MM Naravane on China standoff

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: In a veiled reference to the border standoff with China, Army Chief Gen MM Naravane on Monday said legacy issues and differences need to be resolved through mutual consent and dialogue, and not by unilateral actions.

    In his address at a symposium, Gen MM Naravane, however, noted that there were positive developments with China along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) that led to disengagement of troops in Pangong lake areas in eastern Ladakh.

    The Army Chief also said that the recent comments of Chinese Ambassador Sun Weidong “to avoid relapse and jointly safeguard peace and tranquillity in border areas” augurs well for the future of India-China relations.

    Talking about regional developments, he referred to the renewed commitment by the armies of India and Pakistan to follow the 2003 ceasefire on the Line of Control(LoC), saying it bodes well for the future.

    “We have recently entered into a ceasefire understanding with Pakistan Army in February this year, and since then there has been no exchange of fire on an otherwise active LoC. This bodes well for the future,” he said.

    “With China too, there have been positive developments along the LAC, an area where both countries have differing perceptions on the alignment of the land borders. This has led to disengagement of troops in eastern Ladakh,” he added.

    Gen Naravane also mentioned about the 11th round of Corps commander-level talks between the armies of India and China, and hoped to “settle other border” issues through further negotiations. The military standoff between India and China that erupted on May 5 last at multiple friction points in eastern Ladakh has significantly strained bilateral ties.

    As a result of a series of military and diplomatic talks, India and China completed withdrawal of troops and weapons from the North and South banks of Pangong lake in February.

    The two sides are now engaged in talks to extend the disengagement process to the remaining friction points. “Legacy issues and differences need to be resolved through mutual consent and dialogue and not by unilateral actions,” he said.

    Talking about new challenges being thrown up by the changing character of war, he said “our own region” is also witnessing that wars are no longer confined to the customary hard core kinetics but being increasingly contested in the ambiguous grey zone.”

    “However, even as we move to a technology empowered Army, the peculiar unsettled nature of our borders means that the requirement of ‘boots on ground’ cannot be simply wished away,” he added.

    Gen Naravane reiterated that India looked to maintain peace and harmony with all its neighbours and in the region. “Maintenance of peace and tranquillity requires joint efforts. All nations need to come together to uphold rules-based order, respect international laws and norms and develop mutual respect for each other,” he said.

    The Army Chief also said that geo-strategic spaces are being “constricted” and geo-strategic realities are being “altered” without physical battles, noting conflicts are steadily moving to the new domains of space, cyber and informatics.

    “We are conscious that niche technologies including artificial intelligence, autonomous and unmanned systems, long range precision technology, internet of things, 5G and quantum computing, to name a few, need to be acquired  to remain and capable to face future threats,” he said.

    About the coronavirus pandemic, he said the Army is devising ways and means to work through the challenging times and get its training schedules back on track. “The disruptive powers of the pandemic have, however, changed the way we think and act. It has also exposed our vulnerability to global supply chains, forcing us to re-engineer our dependencies  and work towards self-reliance,” he added.