The latest round of Corps commander-level talks that started around 9 a.m. in Moldo on the Chinese side of the Royal Line of Control (LAC) in the Chushul sector of India in eastern Ladakh lasted for more than 12 hours and was still ongoing at 9 p.m., sources said.
Full coverage – LAC deadlock
It is known that the Indian delegation insisted on an implementation of the agreement with a finalized time limit during the extensive talks between Foreign Minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Moscow on September 10 on the sidelines of a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
The Indian delegation is led by Lieutenant General Harinder Singh, the commander of the 14th Corps of the Indian Army based in Leh. For the first time, the Indian team for the military talks also included a senior official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MEA).
MEA Deputy Secretary Naveen Srivastava, who has been involved in diplomatic talks with China in the border row under the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) on border issues, was part of the delegation.
The team also included Lt. Gen. PGK Menon, who is expected to succeed Singh as 14th Corps commander next month, the sources said.
The sources said the Indian team insisted on an early and complete withdrawal of troops by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to end the four-and-a-half-month standoff, adding that the agenda for the talks was to chart a specific timeline for implementation of the five-point agreement.
The agreement aimed at ending the tense confrontation included measures such as the rapid withdrawal of troops, avoiding actions that could increase tensions, compliance with all agreements and protocols on border management, and measures to restore peace throughout LAC. .
In the previous five rounds of Corps commander-level talks, the Indian side has insisted on the complete disengagement of Chinese troops at the earliest and the immediate restoration of the status quo ante in all areas of eastern Ladakh by April. . The confrontation had started on May 5.
The fifth round of talks with Corps commanders on August 2 lasted almost 11 hours, while the fourth round lasted for almost 15 hours on July 14.
Meanwhile, military sources said the newly incorporated Rafale jets began conducting sorties into various advanced areas in eastern Ladakh as part of measures to boost overall combat readiness in the face of “provocative actions” by Chinese troops. in the last three weeks.
The deployment of French-made Rafale aircraft in Ladakh came less than 10 days after they were formally installed in the Indian Air Force (IAF).
At a ceremony in Ambala on September 10, where five Rafale jets were brought into the IAF, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said this was crucial considering the atmosphere that was being created along the border and was also a “big and severe” message for those who look at the sovereignty of India.
The sources said that the Indian Army has made elaborate arrangements to maintain the current level of troop and weapons deployment in all outpost areas in eastern Ladakh and other sensitive high-altitude sectors in the harsh winter months when the temperature drops to minus 25 degrees centigrade.
They said the situation remained tense on both the south shore and the north shore of the Pangong Lake area as well as other points of friction.
There have been at least three attempts by PLA soldiers to “intimidate” Indian troops along the north and south shores of the Pangong Lake area in the past three weeks, where they even fired into the air for the first time. against the LAC in 45 years.
The situation in eastern Ladakh deteriorated after China unsuccessfully attempted to occupy Indian territory on the southern shore of Lake Pangong on the midnight of August 29-30.
On September 7, Chinese troops again made an unsuccessful attempt to get close to the Indian position and even fired into the air in the Mukhpari area of the Rezang-La mountain range on the southern shore of Pangong Lake.
When Jaishankar and Wang were ready for talks in Moscow, Chinese soldiers fired a series of “warning shots” into the air on the north shore of Lake Pangong to “intimidate” Indian troops, Indian army sources said.
India occupied various strategic heights on the southern shore of Pangong Lake and strengthened its presence in the Finger 2 and Finger 3 areas in the region to thwart any Chinese action.
China has been occupying the areas between Finger 4 and Finger 8. The foothills of the mountains in the area are called Fingers.
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