The 16th round of military talks between India and China held on Sunday to discuss disengagement at the remaining friction points along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh—particularly Patrolling Point 15 (PP15), the Hot Springs area—hit a stalemate once again.
14 corps commander Lt Gen Anindya Sengupta met his Chinese counterpart Major General Yang Lin, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) commander of the South Xinjiang military district. The talks began around 9.30am on Sunday on the Indian side at Chushul and concluded around 10pm.
Major discussion points
Sources in the government told News18 that the prime focus of the discussions was a full disengagement in the Hot Springs area.
“Both sides agreed on further reducing the remaining strength of troops from the Hot Springs area between them,” a source said.
Last year, during the 12th round of talks, both sides had officially agreed on a disengagement at this point, but it was not fully implemented.
Other issues that were discussed include reducing the troop buildup by both sides in the depth areas and keeping each other informed of any air activity that either side may plan.
Last month, a Chinese aircraft flying close to the Line of Actual Control was detected by India. Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhary recently told ANI that all air activity close to the LAC is being monitored closely and appropriate deterrence measures are taken.
A top government official had earlier told News18 that the LAC issue might not see a complete resolution immediately and could witness multiple rounds of talks with China to see some headway.
“However, the troops continue to remain on high alert, to foil any incursion bids during the summers,” the official had said. “The talks will continue and that is a positive step.”
This especially holds true for the Depsang Plains—a friction point pre-dating April 2020 when the current military stand-off began—which is of high strategic importance to India because of its close proximity to Daulat Beg Oldie, where India has an airstrip. Indian patrols have not been able to access PP 10, 11, 12, and 13.
Deadlock
A joint statement released by New Delhi and Beijing late on Monday evening made it evident that the talks made little headway in resolving the ongoing military standoff between the two countries.
As per the statement, the two sides built on the progress made at the last meeting held on March 11 and continued discussions for the resolution of the relevant issues along the LAC in the western sector in a “constructive and forward looking manner.”
“They had a frank and in-depth exchange of views in this regard, in keeping with the guidance provided by the State Leaders to work for the resolution of the remaining issues at the earliest,” the statement said.
It added that the two sides reaffirmed that the resolution of the remaining issues would help in the restoration of peace and tranquillity along the LAC in the Western Sector and enable progress in bilateral relations.
“In the interim, the two sides agreed to maintain the security and stability on the ground in the Western Sector. The two sides agreed to stay in close contact and maintain dialogue through military and diplomatic channels and work out a mutually acceptable resolution of the remaining issues at the earliest,” it said.
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