Engaged in an eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation in disputed spots along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh since April 2020, India and Chinese soldiers would complete the process of disengagement by Tuesday next week, military sources said on Friday.
As earlier reported by THE WEEK, the sources confirmed that the agreement pertained to the last two points of dispute at Demchok and Depsang where the militaries of the two Asian giants continued a “face-off”.
“All tents, temporary structures, etc that had been set up in these two areas will be dismantled and taken away. The disengagement process began on Tuesday and is likely to end by October 28-29. Patrolling by the troops will resume after the disengagement process and would follow the pre-2020 protocol.”
Meanwhile, the talks at various levels would continue for the various points of dispute all along the LAC from Ladakh to Arunachal Pradesh, the sources added.
In a sudden announcement on Monday, foreign secretary Vikram Misri said that after weeks of discussion, “an agreement has been arrived at on patrolling arrangements at the LAC in the India-China border area, leading to disengagement and a resolution of issues that had risen in these areas in 2020.”
After hostilities broke out in mid-2020, the first standoff was resolved in Galwan in July 2020, Pangong Tso and Kailash ranges in February 2021, Gogra in August 2021 and PP 15 in September 2022.
The intense India-China military faceoff had resulted in both the countries deploying more than 1,30,000 soldiers on the borders braving inhospitable terrain and extreme weather conditions in oxygen-depleted environs causing huge strains on the economies.
The recent development is of huge geo-political and strategic significance as the easing of strain on the border could well lead to an upswing in India-China ties which means that the US-led West would need India more than India needs the West.