INDIA. Mumbai: 17th round of India-China Corps Commander level meeting was held at Chushul-Moldo border meeting point on the Chinese side on Tuesday to exchange views on the resolution of the relevant issues along the LAC in the Western Sector, a Defence Ministry statement said on Friday.
“Building on the progress made after the last meeting on July 17, the two sides held discussion in an open and constructive manner. They had a frank and in-depth discussion, keeping in line with the guidance provided by the state leaders to work for the resolution of the remaining issues at the earliest which would help in restoration of peace and tranquillity and enable progress in bilateral relations” the statement read.
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, the statement added.
In a statement, Arindam Bagchi, official spokesman of Ministry of External Affairs conveyed the similar message.
A focus was on resolving issues in eastern Ladakh. The meeting came five months after the countries met for the 16th round of talks in July.
Besides, the meeting took place 11 days after Indian and Chinese troops were engaged in a clash in Yangtse area of Arunachal Pradesh’s Tawang sector.
The meeting lasted for nearly 10 hours. It is learnt that the Indian side insisted on resolving the issues at the remaining friction points of Demchok and Depsang in eastern Ladakh as soon as possible.
In a statement in Parliament on December 13, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said the Chinese troops tried to “unilaterally” change the status quo in the Yangtse area of Arunachal Pradesh’s Tawang sector but the Indian Army compelled them to retreat by its firm and resolute response. However, the Defence Ministry statement did not mention the Tawang clash.
The corps commander-level talks took place over a month after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping shook hands and exchanged pleasantries at the G20 summit in Bali.
It may be recalled that in line with a decision taken at the 16th round of military talks, the two sides had carried out disengagement from Patrolling Point 15 in the Gogra-Hotsprings area in September this year.
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