Indian and Chinese soldiers exchange greetings at Hot Springs in Leh on the occasion of Deepavali on October 31, 2024. Photo: X/@adgpi via ANI

In preparation for the meeting of the Special Representatives between India and China on boundary resolution, India and China on Thursday (December 5, 2024) held the 32nd meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC). This is the latest in a series of bilateral engagements since the recent bonhomie in the bilateral relationship following disengagement in the last two friction points — Depsang and Demchok.

Editorial: ​Over the borderline on the India-China deal 

“The two sides positively affirmed the implementation of the most recent disengagement agreement which completed the resolution of the issues that emerged in 2020. They also prepared for the next meeting of the Special Representatives, which is to be held in accordance with the decision of the two leaders in their meeting in Kazan on October 23,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.

The Indian delegation was led by Gourangalal Das, Joint Secretary (East Asia), and the Chinese delegation was led by Hong Liang, Director General of the Boundary and Oceanic Affairs Department of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The 31st round of WMCC meeting was held on August 29 in Beijing.

Both sides reviewed the situation in border areas, and “reflected on the lessons learnt” from the events of 2020 in order to prevent their recurrence, the statement said, and in this context, they highlighted the importance of regular exchanges and contacts at diplomatic and military level through established mechanisms. They agreed on the need for effective border management and maintenance of peace and tranquillity in accordance with relevant bilateral agreements, protocols and understandings reached between the two governments, the MEA added.

On November 4, the Indian Army announced that it has patrolled to one of the five Patrolling Points (PP) in the Depsang area of eastern Ladakh, the first time since the disengagement undertaken a week prior last week and also since the stand-off began in May 2020.

The Indian Army last accessed the PPs in Depsang in January 2020, as reported by The Hindu earlier. As part of the latest agreement on disengagement from Depsang and Demchok, which completes the process from all friction points of the standoff, both sides also agreed on resumption of patrolling and access to grazing areas in the two areas. “The patrolling is coordinated between both sides to avoid clashes, and the frequency would be to a maximum of one Patrolling Point (PP) a week by each side in both locations. All patrolling points have since been accessed,” officials said.

Talks are continuing between the two sides for resumption of patrolling in other five friction points where buffer zones are in place following disengagement.

Since the agreement, in addition to the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of BRICS summit, there have been other high-level exchanges between the two countries.

New Delhi:

India and China have implemented a pact sealed last month on patrolling in Depsang and Demchok along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh as per agreed modalities and timelines, the government said on Friday.

The two sides reached the agreement on disengagement and patrolling in the last two friction points on October 21.

Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh said in Lok Sabha that the terms of the disengagement agreements reached prior to the latest pact continued to hold in relevant areas in eastern Ladakh.

“India and China reached agreement on patrolling arrangements along the LAC in India-China border areas in Depsang and Demchok on October 21 leading to disengagement,” he said.

“It has been agreed therein that patrolling activities and, wherever applicable, grazing will resume as per longstanding practice before friction started in these areas,” he said.

“The agreement has since been effected and implemented as per modalities and timelines agreed,” Mr Singh added. The minister was replying to a question.

“The terms of the disengagement agreements reached prior to October 21 continue to hold in relevant areas in eastern Ladakh. The terms of the agreements apply mutually to both sides and are without prejudice to India’s positions on LAC or boundary lines,” he said.

Mr Singh said the government continues to keep a constant watch on all developments having a bearing on India’s security and takes all the necessary measures to safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Indian and Chinese militaries are carrying out one round of patrolling each in Depsang and Demchok, people familiar with the matter said.

At the same time, they said the two sides have maintained their deployment of troops along the LAC and the focus now will be on de-escalation of the overall situation.

Each side currently has around 50,000 to 60,000 troops along the LAC in the region.

After India and China reached the agreement last month, Army Chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi said the Indian military is trying to restore “trust” and both sides will have to “reassure each other” to achieve this objective.

Two days after the pact was sealed, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks in the Russian city of Kazan.

The two leaders endorsed the agreement on patrolling and disengagement and issued directions to revive various bilateral dialogue mechanisms, signalling attempts to normalise ties.

In the nearly 50-minute meeting held on the sidelines of the BRICS summit, PM Modi underscored the importance of properly handling differences and disputes and not allowing them to disturb peace and tranquility in border areas.

The Prime Minister said mutual trust, mutual respect and mutual sensitivity should remain the basis of the relations. India has been maintaining that its ties with China cannot be normal unless there is peace in the border areas.

The eastern Ladakh border standoff erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong lake area. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Dismissing reports that military talks between India and China on the modalities of patrols have reached a deadlock in eastern Ladakh’s Depsang, the Indian Army has said no roadblocks or objections have been faced and termed the articles “speculative and bereft of facts”. 

In a post on X on Thursday, the Additional Directorate General of Public Information of the Army said some reports on Wednesday and Thursday had speculated about roadblocks in the disengagement process in Depsang and Demchok after an agreement between India and China last month.

“It is unambiguously stated that the disengagement at Depsang and Demchok has been completed and implementation of consensus, as agreed to, is being undertaken in a planned manner that includes resumption of patrolling to traditional patrolling areas. There are no roadblocks/objections from either side that have been faced in this process,” the Army said.

Certain Media Articles on 06-07 November 2024 have speculated about roadblocks/objections in the disengagement process consequent to the consensus between the Indian and Chinese sides on 21 October 24. It is unambiguously stated that the disengagement at Depsang and Demchok has… pic.twitter.com/SHxT8Mvmf2

— ADG PI – INDIAN ARMY (@adgpi) November 7, 2024

It also cautioned the concerned media houses to authenticate facts on sensitive issues to ensure no misleading information is published,

“The articles published in this regard are speculative and bereft of facts. The concerned media houses are requested to verify and authenticate facts before publishing such sensitive articles and exercise due editorial discretion so that no unsubstantiated or misleading information is propagated,” the post said. 

On October 21, India had announced that a patrolling agreement had been reached for the two contentious areas of Depsang and Demchok and the troops would return to the positions that existed before the stand-off between the two countries began in 2020. The disengagement process included the dismantling of structures and the restoration of the land on which they stood to their original condition. 

“We reached an agreement on patrolling, and we have gone back to the 2020 position. With that, we can say the disengagement with China has been completed… There are areas which, for various reasons after 2020, they blocked us, we blocked them. We have now reached an understanding which will allow patrolling as we had been doing till 2020,” External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had said. 

The disengagement process was completed last month and the Army and the government had said last week that patrolling has begun in both Depsang and Demchok. 

New Delhi:

The Ministry of External Affairs on Saturday said that verification patrolling has commenced in Demchok and Depsang, paving the way for coordinated patrolling to begin once the disengagement is fully finalized.

This development follows an agreement reached on October 21, 2024, between India and China on patrolling arrangements along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, bringing an end to the over four-year military standoff.

Speaking at a weekly press briefing, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “On October 21, 2024, the last phase of disengagement was agreed upon between India and China. As a result, verification patrolling has commenced on mutually agreed terms in Demchok and Depsang. We will keep you updated.”

Notably, in a significant diplomatic development, India and China held their first bilateral talks in five years on the sidelines of the 16th BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia, marking a crucial step towards mending the strained relations between the two neighbouring countries, which have been marred by a prolonged military standoff along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.

Mr Jaiswal said, “The meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping took place in Kazan. It was bilaterally arranged.”

Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri while addressing the media in Kazan, stated that “this agreement is the outcome of extensive discussions over the past several weeks with Chinese interlocutors at both diplomatic and military levels.”

He noted that military commanders have been involved in negotiations aimed at addressing the tensions that have persisted since 2020.

Mr Misri explained that the agreement signifies a path toward disengagement and a potential resolution of the issues that arose during the significant confrontations in 2020.

He recalled the clashes that occurred between the People’s Liberation Army of China and the Indian Army, particularly highlighting the violent encounters in June 2020, which resulted in casualties on both sides.

“On several areas along the Line of Actual Control, we held discussions with Chinese interlocutors both on diplomatic as well as the military levels through meeting with military commanders at various levels. These discussions had in the past resulted in the resolution of standoffs at various locations. There are some locations and areas where stand-offs had not been resolved,” said Misri.

The disengagement is seen as the first concrete step towards restoring the pre-2020 status quo ante. The Galwan Valley clash in June 2020, resulting in casualties on both sides, was the most severe conflict between the two nations in decades. Additionally, agreements have been reached in other sectors along the LAC.

India and China emphasised the importance of maintaining peace and tranquillity at the border, underscoring that mutual trust, respect, and sensitivity should form the foundation of their relationship. PM Modi highlighted that the restoration of peace in the border areas is essential for the normalisation of bilateral relations.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Despite the patrolling agreement with China, which was announced earlier this week, it will take time to rebuild trust and for the two countries to be willing to work with each other, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said.

During an interaction with students from a university in Pune on Saturday, Mr Jaishankar said the breakthrough with China was possible because the military enabled India to stand its ground and make its point and diplomacy also did its part. A focus on infrastructure in border areas, which enabled effective deployment of the military, also played a key role.

Responding to a question on the patrolling and disengagement agreement in the Depsang and Demchok areas in Eastern Ladakh and what can be expected from the future of India-China relations, the minister said, “From 2020, the situation at the border has been very disturbed and that has, understandably, had a very negative impact on the overall relationship. Since September 2020, we have been negotiating with the Chinese on how to find a solution.”

Mr Jaishankar said there were different aspects to the solution but the pressing one was disengagement because “the troops are very very close up to each other and the possibility of something happening, god forbid, is there”. The other aspects, he said are de-escalation, given the troop buildup by China and India’s response to it, and the larger question of boundary settlement.

The focus, for now, is disengagement, the minister said, stressing that while there had been understandings in some areas after 2020, blocking of patrolling remained an issue which was being negotiated for two years.  

“So, what happened on October 21 was that in Depsang and Demchok, we came to the understanding that patrolling would be resumed how it used to be before… This was important because it was an affirmation that if we can do the disengagement, then it is possible for the leadership level to meet, which is what happened (with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-Chinese President Xi Jinping meeting) in Russia’s Kazan during the BRICS summit,” he said during the interaction at FLAME University in Pune.

Future Of Ties

On the question of where the India-China relationship goes from here, Mr Jaishankar said, “I think it is a bit early. We have to wait for things to settle themselves. Because, after four years of a very disturbed border where peace and tranquillity have been shattered, it will naturally take time to rebuild a degree of trust and a willingness to work with each other.”

“If we have reached where we have today, there are two reasons for it. The first is a very determined effort on our part to stand our ground and make our point and this would only happen because the military was there in very, very unimaginable conditions to defend the country. The military did its part and diplomacy did its part,” he emphasised.

The second reason, the minister said, was the importance given to improving infrastructure in the border areas in the past decade. 

“Today, we have put in almost five times annually the resources that would be there a decade ago. That’s showing results and that enables the military to be effectively deployed. I would be patient. When PM Modi and President Xi met, it was decided that the foreign ministers and national security advisers would meet and see how this should be taken forward,” he explained. 

Process On

NDTV had reported on Friday on satellite images showing tents and semi-permanent structures being removed by the Chinese side in Depsang and Demchok. 

The patrolling agreement had been announced by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri on Monday and army sources had said on Friday that the process of disengagement would be completed in the two contentious areas by October 29. PM Modi and Mr Jinping welcomed the agreement when they met on Wednesday.

The stand-off between the Indian and Chinese armies began on May 2020 and a deadly clash took place in Ladakh’s Galwan the next month in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed in action and an unspecified number on the Chinese side also died. 

A troop buildup followed and, after months of talks, Indian and Chinese troops withdrew from the contentious Gogra-Hot Springs area in Ladakh in September 2022 and returned to the pre-April-2020 position.

New Delhi:

Despite the patrolling agreement with China, which was announced earlier this week, it will take time to rebuild trust and for the two countries to be willing to work with each other, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said.

During an interaction with students from a university in Pune on Saturday, Mr Jaishankar said the breakthrough with China was possible because the military enabled India to stand its ground and make its point and diplomacy also did its part. A focus on infrastructure in border areas, which enabled effective deployment of the military, also played a key role.

Responding to a question on the patrolling and disengagement agreement in the Depsang and Demchok areas in Eastern Ladakh and what can be expected from the future of India-China relations, the minister said, “From 2020, the situation at the border has been very disturbed and that has, understandably, had a very negative impact on the overall relationship. Since September 2020, we have been negotiating with the Chinese on how to find a solution.”

Mr Jaishankar said there were different aspects to the solution but the pressing one was disengagement because “the troops are very very close up to each other and the possibility of something happening, god forbid, is there”. The other aspects, he said are de-escalation, given the troop buildup by China and India’s response to it, and the larger question of boundary settlement.

The focus, for now, is disengagement, the minister said, stressing that while there had been understandings in some areas after 2020, blocking of patrolling remained an issue which was being negotiated for two years.  

“So, what happened on October 21 was that in Depsang and Demchok, we came to the understanding that patrolling would be resumed how it used to be before… This was important because it was an affirmation that if we can do the disengagement, then it is possible for the leadership level to meet, which is what happened (with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-Chinese President Xi Jinping meeting) in Russia’s Kazan during the BRICS summit,” he said during the interaction at FLAME University in Pune.

Future Of Ties

On the question of where the India-China relationship goes from here, Mr Jaishankar said, “I think it is a bit early. We have to wait for things to settle themselves. Because, after four years of a very disturbed border where peace and tranquillity have been shattered, it will naturally take time to rebuild a degree of trust and a willingness to work with each other.”

“If we have reached where we have today, there are two reasons for it. The first is a very determined effort on our part to stand our ground and make our point and this would only happen because the military was there in very, very unimaginable conditions to defend the country. The military did its part and diplomacy did its part,” he emphasised.

The second reason, the minister said, was the importance given to improving infrastructure in the border areas in the past decade. 

“Today, we have put in almost five times annually the resources that would be there a decade ago. That’s showing results and that enables the military to be effectively deployed. I would be patient. When PM Modi and President Xi met, it was decided that the foreign ministers and national security advisers would meet and see how this should be taken forward,” he explained. 

Process On

NDTV had reported on Friday on satellite images showing tents and semi-permanent structures being removed by the Chinese side in Depsang and Demchok. 

The patrolling agreement had been announced by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri on Monday and army sources had said on Friday that the process of disengagement would be completed in the two contentious areas by October 29. PM Modi and Mr Jinping welcomed the agreement when they met on Wednesday.

The stand-off between the Indian and Chinese armies began on May 2020 and a deadly clash took place in Ladakh’s Galwan the next month in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed in action and an unspecified number on the Chinese side also died. 

A troop buildup followed and, after months of talks, Indian and Chinese troops withdrew from the contentious Gogra-Hot Springs area in Ladakh in September 2022 and returned to the pre-April-2020 position.

Days after India announced that a patrolling arrangement had been reached with China, NDTV has accessed the first satellite images of disengagement taking place on the ground in Depsang and Demchok in Eastern Ladakh. 

The agreement was announced on Monday and a satellite image from the Depsang plains taken on October 11 shows four vehicles and two tents.

Another image taken on Friday shows that the tents have been removed and the vehicles are moving away. The land on which the tents stood has also been restored.

The high-resolution images have been provided by Maxar. 

The images from Depsang are from near the ‘Y Junction’ from where Indian soldiers were prevented from travelling east to India’s patrolling points. The patrolling points, or PPs, mark the extent of the Line of Actual Control that India claims in these areas. 

In a similar satellite image from Demchok from October 9, semi-permanent Chinese structures can be seen.

The same structures are missing in an image from the disputed site on Friday. 

Army sources had said earlier in the day that the process of disengagement would be completed in the two contentious areas by Tuesday, October 29,  and the troops would return to the positions that existed before the stand-off between the two countries began in 2020. The process includes the dismantling of structures and restoring the land on which they stood to their original condition. 

Sources said both India and China will continue to have surveillance options in Depsang and Demchok, and troops will inform the other side before stepping out on patrol “to avoid any miscommunication”.

The stand-off began in May 2020 and a clash took place in Ladakh’s Galwan the next month in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed in action and the Chinese side also suffered losses, with the exact number remaining unconfirmed.

A troop buildup followed on both sides and military-level talks began taking place to resolve the stand-off. In September 2022, Indian and Chinese troops withdrew from the contentious Gogra-Hot Springs area in Ladakh and returned to the pre-April-2020 position.

‘Peace And Stability’

After the announcement by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri on Monday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar confirmed it at the NDTV World Summit. 

“We reached an agreement on patrolling, and we have gone back to the 2020 position. With that, we can say the disengagement with China has been completed. Details will come out in due course,” Mr Jaishankar said. 

“There are areas which, for various reasons after 2020, they blocked us, we blocked them. We have now reached an understanding which will allow patrolling as we had been doing till 2020,” he added. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi then met Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Russia – their first bilateral since 2019 – on Wednesday and they welcomed the agreement. “It should be our priority to ensure there is peace and stability along our border,” PM Modi told Mr Jinping.

New Delhi:

Indian and Chinese troops will complete disengagement – in the Depsang and Demchok areas of Ladakh – and fall back to pre-April 2020 positions by Tuesday, Army sources said this afternoon.

Troops from both sides will fall back to pre-April 2020 positions and all temporary infrastructure – sheds or tents – will be removed, while ground commanders will continue to hold regular meetings.

Sources said each side will also continue to have surveillance options in the Depsang and Demchok areas, and will inform the other prior to stepping out on patrol “to avoid any miscommunication”.

India and China reached a patrolling agreement last week – for these regions only – that will, hopefully, put an end to over four years of military and diplomatic tension arising from the Line of Actual Control.

That tension was fuelled by a series of military skirmishes in the Pangong Lake area in May 2020 and included the clash in Ladakh’s Galwan in June, in which 20 Indian soldiers died for their country.

NDTV Explains | India-China Border Patrol Deal: What Is It, Why Is It Important

In the weeks and months following the Galwan violence both countries ramped up military presence along the LAC, the de facto international border; in August last year it was reported that Delhi had airlifted nearly 70,000 soldiers, over 90 tanks, and hundreds of infantry combat vehicles, as well as deploying Sukhoi and Jaguar fighter jets in eastern Ladakh, for rapid deployment in the region.

Beijing had similarly deployed soldiers “in considerable numbers all across Eastern Ladakh and the Northern Front, right up to (India’s) Eastern Command”, the Army had said earlier.

On the disengagement and de-escalation process, Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi said this week that the Indian military is “trying to restore trust” in its Chinese counterpart.

READ | “Trying To Restore Trust”: Army Chief On India-China Patrolling Deal

“This (rebuilding of trust) will happen once we are able to see each other, and convince and reassure each other, that we are not creeping into buffer zones that have been created,” the General said.

The patrolling agreement was announced – hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Russia for the BRICS summit where he would hold a bilateral with China’s Xi Jinping.

READ | PM Modi, Xi Welcome “Complete Disengagement” Along LAC

Speaking after it was confirmed, Mr Modi told the Chinese leader, “It should be our priority to ensure there is peace and stability along our border”, and stressed the need for “mutual trust, mutual respect”.

Earlier External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar told NDTV the agreement was the result of “patient and persevering diplomacy”. Speaking at NDTV’s World Summit, he said, “I think it creates a basis for peace and tranquillity along the border, which was there before 2020…”

De-escalation is still a concern in other areas, including the Gogra-Hot Springs area in Ladakh, after Indian and Chinese forces backed down in September last year. However, intel indicates China continues to hold large swathes of Indian territory to the north, in the Depsang plains area.

Depsang is seen as critical for India since it provides access to the airstrip at Daulat Beg Oldie and prevents Chinese troops from threatening vital logistics centres in the area. Demchok, meanwhile is divided in two by the LAC; India controls the western part, which is claimed by China.

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