WEB DESK
China and India are working for further de-escalation of the border situation in eastern Ladakh and both sides will have consultations to determine specific arrangements for the next round of talks.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying, in response to a question today said, China and India have been in communication through diplomatic and military channels on the border issue. Without giving details as to what is delaying the next round of talks, she said, based on the implementation of ‘current consensus’, both sides will have consultations to determine specific arrangements for further talks.
India has been maintaining that the onus is on China to carry forward the process of ‘disengagement’ at the friction points in eastern Ladakh. In the last round, which was the 8th round of Corps Commander-level talks, both sides agreed in a joint statement, to push for the settlement of ‘other outstanding issues’, so as to jointly maintain peace and tranquility in the border areas. The talks were held on 6th November to resolve the border standoff that erupted in May.
At the seventh round of talks too, both sides had agreed to maintain dialogue and communication through military and diplomatic channels to arrive at a mutually acceptable solution for disengagement “as early as possible”.
After the sixth round of military talks, the two sides announced a slew of decisions including not to send more troops to the frontline, refrain from unilaterally changing the situation on the ground and avoid taking any actions that may further complicate matters.
The sixth round was held to explore ways to implement a ‘five-point agreement’ reached between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi at a meeting in Moscow on September 10 on the sidelines of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) foreign ministers meet. The pact included measures like quick disengagement of troops, avoiding action that could escalate tensions, adherence to all agreements and protocols on border management and steps to restore peace along the LAC.
The two armies are locked in a long-drawn border standoff in various locations in eastern Ladakh braving sub-zero temperature. Multiple rounds of talks between the two sides have not yielded any concrete outcome yet, even as the standoff enters in its eighth month.