By Bula Devi
Janjivan Bureau /New Delhi: India and China had hardened their positions following a no headway in the 13th round of Corps Commander-level meeting held on October 10 in Moldo on the Chinese side of LAC in eastern Ladakh. After over a month, however, diplomats on Thursday agreed the “need to find an early resolution to the remaining issues along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh while fully abiding by bilateral agreements and protocols so as to restore peace and tranquility”.
According to a press statement of the Ministry of External Affairs, the two sides also 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”.
The two sides also agreed that both sides should in the interim also continue to ensure a stable ground situation and avoid any untoward incident, the statement read.
The 23rd meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation & Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC) was held today. The Indian delegation was led by the Additional Secretary (East Asia) from the Ministry of External Affairs. The Director General of the Boundary & Oceanic Department of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs led the Chinese delegation.
The MEA statement also underlined that the two sides recalled the agreement between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi in September in Dushanbe. The agreement was that military and diplomatic officials should continue their discussions to resolve the remaining issues along the LAC 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 10th October 2021,” the statement said.
After a year-and-a-half into the military standoff on the LAC in eastern Ladakh, troops have disengaged on the north and south banks of Pangong Tso and Gogra Post following several rounds of talks. However, troops continue to face each other at Hot Springs.