India, China agree to hold next round of senior commanders' meeting at the earliest

India and China on Thursday engaged in diplomatic discussions aimed at resolving remaining issues and achieving full disengagement in eastern Ladakh. Notably, there were no clear indications of a significant breakthrough.

Both sides agreed to schedule the next senior commanders’ meeting at the earliest to achieve the “objective”.

Emphasis was placed on maintaining a stable situation on the ground and preventing any untoward incidents, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

The 28th Meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC) was held on 30 November 2023. The two sides reviewed the situation along the LAC in the Western Sector of the India-China border areas, and engaged in an open,… pic.twitter.com/OKXT7aXdmF

— ANI (@ANI) November 30, 2023

The virtual discussions took place under the framework of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC).

Gourangalal Das, Joint Secretary (East Asia) in the Ministry of External Affairs, led the Indian delegation, and the Chinese team was headed by the director-general of boundary and oceanic affairs in the Chinese foreign ministry.

“The two sides reviewed the situation along the LAC in the Western Sector of the India-China border areas, and engaged in an open, constructive and in-depth discussion of proposals to resolve the remaining issues and achieve complete disengagement in eastern Ladakh,” the MEA said in a statement.

“They further agreed on the need to maintain peace and tranquillity along the border areas, ensure a stable situation on the ground and avoid any untoward incident,” it said.

“The two sides agreed to continue dialogue through military and diplomatic channels and hold the next round of the senior commanders’ meeting at the earliest in order to achieve the above objective,” the MEA added.

In the most recent military discussions held in October, the Indian side strongly emphasised the need for resolving persistent issues at Depsang and Demchok.

The Indian and Chinese troops are locked in an over three-year confrontation in certain friction points in eastern Ladakh even as the two sides completed disengagement from several areas following extensive diplomatic and military talks.

India consistently asserts that normalising ties with China is contingent on achieving peace in the border regions. The eastern Ladakh border standoff erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong lake area.

The relationship between the two nations experienced a significant downturn, particularly after a fierce clash in the Galwan Valley in June 2020, marking the most serious military conflict in decades.

Through a series of military and diplomatic dialogues, both sides successfully completed the disengagement process in 2021 on the north and south banks of the Pangong lake and in the Gogra area.

With inputs from PTI