The joint statement test issued on Tuesday will be based on China’s actual actions to disconnect and shrink along the Royal Line of Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, in accordance with the “consensus” reached between the minister. Minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese. counterpart Wang Yi in Moscow September 10.
Monday’s 14-hour dialogue between delegations led by 14th Corps commander Lieutenant General Harinder Singh and the head of the southern Xinjiang military district, Major General Liu Lin, resulted in no breakthrough. to defuse the confrontation of troops of almost five months of duration. sources said.
But the joint statement signaled a more positive outcome, as the two countries agreed to “seriously implement the important consensus” previously reached between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the president. Xi Jinping to keep the peace throughout LAC.
The Jaishankar-Wang talks also agreed that both sides would take steps to “quickly disconnect” in the high-altitude region, where both sides have amassed more than 50,000 troops each, as well as tanks, armored vehicles, howitzers, and ground-to-air. missile systems.
According to Tuesday’s joint statement, the two armies will also refrain from unilaterally changing the situation on the ground and taking any action that may complicate the situation. They will also strengthen communication between local commanders to avoid “misunderstandings and wrong judgments.”
The statement appears to indicate that the current stalemate may continue, with high-level government sources hinting that discussions at the “apex leadership” level may be necessary to break the stalemate.
The two sides agreed to hold the seventh round of meetings at the military commander level as soon as possible, take practical steps to adequately resolve problems on the ground, and jointly safeguard peace and tranquility in the border area.
The sources, however, said there was “almost no meeting point” on the actual withdrawal of troops and the reduction of escalation during the military talks, which included diplomatic representation from India for the first time. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA), in fact, has assiduously used the cover of diplomatic and military talks to increase its accumulation of troops and logistics in the region.
In military talks, India pushed for a concrete roadmap for “complete de-escalation” in the immediate areas of confrontation, as well as in the “deep areas” along the entire border in eastern Ladakh. China, in turn, continued to insist on the withdrawal of Indian troops from the heights on the southern shore of the Pangong Tso-Chushul area.
“There was a mismatch between the rival proposals. But then, it is a complex issue, which will need sustained dialogue to arrive at a mutually acceptable plan. We will not lower our guard, ”said a source.
The PLA remains annoyed by the way Indian troops pre-emptively occupied multiple tactical heights on the ridge line stretching from Thakung on the southern shore of Pangong Tso to Gurung Hill, Spanggur Gap, Magar Hill, Mukhpari, Rezang La and Reqin La (Rechin mountain pass) from August 29 to 30.
These heights, which were unoccupied since the 1962 war, allow Indian soldiers to clearly observe PLA positions and roads, as well as the Moldo military garrison in the region.
There have been at least four incidents of exchange of warning shots after the PLA tried to dislodge Indian troops from the heights through aggressive maneuvers between August 29 and September 8. “During the talks, the PLA delegation kept coming back to the need for Indian soldiers to vacate those heights,” said another source.
For India, in addition to the “sticking points” at Pangong Tso, Chushul and Gogra-Hotsprings, the strong accumulation of PLA in the strategically located Depsang-Daulat Beg Oldie sector also remains a major concern.
Overall, both sides have accumulated more than 50,000 troops each, along with tanks, armored vehicles, howitzers, surface-to-air missile systems, along the entire border in eastern Ladakh.
Even if the two sides eventually come to a de-escalation plan, the disinduction from such high levels of troops is likely to last until the end of this year. India, of course, will be extremely cautious because the PLA had previously breached an agreement to withdraw from the Galwan Valley, leading to the violent skirmish and casualties there on June 15.
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