Stalemate continued at the volatile Line of Actual Control(LAC)in Ladakh with the latest round of diplomatic level talks on Thursday unable to provide any breakthrough. However, India and China reaffirmed their commitment to complete disengagement of troops from all the friction points “expeditiously.”
The two sides also expressed their resolve to maintain peace at the LAC and continue dialogue to address differences.
These takeaways emerged from diplomatic level talks under the aegis of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination(WMCC). These joint secretary level talks, fifth since the stand-offs started in early May, were ongoing to end tension at the LAC.
The five military level talks, so far, since the stand-offs started also did not see any positive outcome with China, till now, refusing to pull back from the friction points. Moreover, over the weeks it has added muscle to its troop strength at these sites besides deploying heavy guns and armour.
With China not budging and retreating from friction points like Pangong Tso(Lake)and Depsang valley, the Indian security establishment was expecting no major breakthrough in this round of talks, sources said. They also said as the issue is “complex and complicated,” the coming weeks will see more parleys at the diplomatic and military level to bring down temperature at the volatile LAC.
Meanwhile, giving details of the latest round of WMCC talks, ministry of external affairs spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said here the Indian delegation was led by Joint Secretary (East Asia), MEA, while the Director General of the Boundary & Oceanic Department of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs led the Chinese delegation.
Srivastava said the two sides had a “candid” and in-depth exchange of views on the existing situation in the India-China border areas. They reaffirmed that in accordance with the agreements reached between the two Foreign Ministers and the two Special Representatives (SRs), the two sides will continue to sincerely work towards complete disengagement of the troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Western(Ladakh) Sector.
In this context they agreed to resolve the outstanding issues in an “expeditious” manner and in accordance with the existing agreements and protocols. The two sides were in agreement that restoration of peace and tranquility in the border areas would be essential for the overall development of bilateral relations, he said.
The two sides further acknowledged the need to maintain close communication through both the diplomatic and military channels so as to ensure complete disengagement. In this regard, they also agreed to continue their ongoing engagements including through the meetings of the WMCC, Srivastava said.
Sources said India also insisted in the talks its stand that status quo ante be restored on the LAC and no effort to change the LAC is acceptable to it. Restoring status quo ante means that China will have to retreat to its positions across the LAC as they were on April 30.
With talks making little headway till now, the Indian armed force are now prepared for the long haul. Besides honing their operational preparedness, the Army has started winter stocking in the right earnest to sustain its troops in Ladakh in the winter months.
In fact, winter will set in there by September end with temperature dipping to minus 20 degrees some time later. The army is rushing prefabricated huts to withstand extreme cold besides other logistic support.