Indian, Chinese armies stand back

Pangong Tso is key to solution; Delhi, Beijing to continue talks at Army level ● From this location, the Chinese troops can prevent the Indian Army to patrol till Finger 8 which India believes is part of its territory.

● The main contention between Indian and Chinese troops remains the northern bank of Pangong Tso lake where Chinese troops have pitched tents at Finger 4 location.

As a part of confidence building measures, the Chinese and Indian armies have slightly moved back from three flash points in eastern Ladakh.

The Chinese Army has pulled back its troops from Patrolling Points 14 in the Galwan area, 15, and Hot Springs by two kilometres. The Indian Army reciprocated by retracting some of its troops and vehicles from the area.

Major General-level talks between the two sides are scheduled on Wednesday to try to resolve the monthlong stand-off between the two armies at the Line of Actual Control (LAC). These will be a follow-up of the Lieutenant General level talks which were held on Saturday. There will also be Brigadier and commanding officer level talks later this week at Galwan and Hot Springs.

The main contention between Indian and Chinese troops remains the northern bank of Pangong Tso lake where Chinese troops have pitched tents at Finger 4 location to prevent the Indian Army to patrol till Finger 8 which India believes is part of its territory. The troops from the two sides were involved in a brutal clash at Pangong Tso on the intervening night of May 5 and 6. There is a possibility that another round of Lieutenant General level talks may be needed to try to resolve the Pangong Tso issue.

The major threat still remains the massive buildup by both armies along with artillery, armoured vehicles and tanks in their in-depth areas along the LAC. Until these troops move back to peace-time locations the threat perception will remain high at the LAC.

Defence minister Rajnath Singh had said on Monday that talks between top India-China military commanders had been “very positive” and both countries had agreed that further talks will be held to resolve the current “tussle” at the LAC. He had said that the border dispute between India and China had been going on from a long time and “we want that this border dispute should be resolved as soon as possible.”

Indian Army’s 14 Corps Commander Lt Gen Harinder Singh and People’s Liberation Army’s South Xinjiang Military Region Commander Maj Gen Liu Lin had held an over fivehour meeting on Saturday in Moldo.

India has asked China to reduce the build-up of troops at the LAC and revert to the status quo of April in Pangong Tso, Hot Springs and Galwan Valley.