Some success comes after Doval, Chinese counterpart Wang talk disengagement
The eight-week-old stand-off at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh has defused to some extent with the Chinese troops showing the first sign of disengagement.
The important breakthrough came on Monday after National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi talked to each other on Sunday stressing the need for early disengagement.
While the de-escalation has started from all the four face-off sites in Eastern Ladakh, including the Galwan Valley which saw bloody clashes on June 15 killing 20 Indian Army personnel, the Armed forces are keeping a close watch.
The Indian troops have also moved back at least one kilometre after the Chinese did so, but the local commanders do not want to take any chances, sources said here.
The other locations include Hot Spring, Gogra and Pangong Tso (lake). The face-off started from this lake on May 5 when the Chinese stopped an Indian patrol leading to fisticuffs between the two sides.
Responding to the pull-back, China said front-line troops are taking “effective measures” and making “progress” to disengage and ease the tensions in the Galwan Valley.
“China and India have made progress coming up with effective measures for frontline troops to disengage and de-escalate the border situation at the third commander-level talks between the two militaries on June 30,” China’s Global Times quoted Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian as saying.
Giving the reason for this “cautious wait and watch” policy, Indian sources said the Chinese had started pulling back in early June too from the Galwan Valley. However, the situation turned for the worst after the Chinese went back on the agreement to retreat and returned on June 15 leading to the brawl.
As of now, the Chinese have retreated more than a kilometre on their side of the LAC. The agreement between the Corps Commanders of the two Armies in June stipulated that both the armies will go back more than three kilometres to ensure peaceful disengagement and de-escalation of tension on the border.
The two commanders held three rounds of parleys on June 6, 22 and 30.
The important development on Monday came after Doval and Wang Yi, who is State Councillor and Foreign Minister, had a telephone conversation on Sunday. The two Special Representatives had a frank and in-depth exchange of views on the recent developments in the Western Sector (Ladakh) of the India-China border areas.
On consensus for the diplomatic and military officials of the two sides should continue talks, the two Special Representatives agreed that both sides should take guidance from the consensus of the leaders that maintenance of peace and tranquility in the India-China border areas were essential for the further development of our bilateral relations, and that two sides should not allow differences to become disputes, the official statement issued on Monday said.
Therefore, they agreed that it was necessary to ensure at the earliest complete disengagement of the troops along the LAC and de-escalation from India-China border areas for full restoration of peace and tranquility.
In this regard, they further agreed that both sides should complete the ongoing disengagement process along the LAC expeditiously.
They re-affirmed that both sides should strictly respect and observe the line of actual control and should not take any unilateral action to alter the status quo and work together to avoid any incident in the future that could disturb peace and tranquility in border areas.
The two Special Representatives agreed that the diplomatic and military officials of the two sides should continue their discussions, including under the framework of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China border affairs (WMCC), and implement the understandings reached in a timely manner to achieve the above outcomes.
It was also agreed that the two Special Representatives will continue their conversations to ensure full and enduring restoration of peace and tranquility in the India-China border areas in accordance with the bilateral agreements and protocols.
In the early 2000s, the two countries agreed that the Special Representatives of India and China will talk regularly to resolve the long-pending boundary dispute. The two Special Representatives have so far held 23 rounds of discussions over the years. India and China have a more than 4,000 km disputed border known as Line of Actual Control (LAC).
On the ongoing disengagement, officials said Indian soldiers have also pulled back and a buffer zone has been created between the troops of both sides. It is only the first step of disengagement, they said, adding India will need to wait to see if this is a lasting, genuine disengagement.
With Chinese removing their temporary structures including tents and makeshift bunkers and Indians reciprocating the gesture, sources said both the Armies have also started pulling back their heavy guns.
The June 6 pact between the Corps Commanders said both the Armies will also pull out additional troops and weapons from the operational areas and go back to their respective peacetime locations on either side of the LAC.
The two sides had bolstered their troop strength on the four face-off sites and operational areas in the last two months.
Incidentally, the pullback started three days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a surprise visit to Ladakh to boost the morale of the troops and take stock of the situation on the ground with the local commanders.
He also interacted with some of the soldiers now recuperating at the hospital after suffering injuries during the June 15 skirmish.