‘ARMY WILL HOLD GROUND ON LAC AS LONG AS NEEDED’

THE ARMY CHIEF SAID THERE WAS NO DOUBT THAT INDIA FACED A COLLUSIVE THREAT FROM CHINA AND PAKISTAN.

NEW DELHI: Army chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane on Tuesday said that the Indian Army was prepared to hold ground in eastern Ladakh “for as long as it takes” to achieve national objectives in case the ongoing military and diplomatic talks with China to reduce tensions in the sensitive sector are “prolonged,” even as he described a joint threat from China and Pakistan as “very potent.”

NEW DELHI: Army chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane on Tuesday said that the Indian Army was prepared to hold ground in eastern Ladakh “for as long as it takes” to achieve national objectives in case the ongoing military and diplomatic talks with China to reduce tensions in the sensitive sector are “prolonged,” even as he described a joint threat from China and Pakistan as “very potent”.

He said India should not read too much into the recent withdrawal of Chinese troops from depth areas on the Tibetan plateau as there has been absolutely no reduction of troops by either side at friction points in the Ladakh sector, where the border standoff between the two nuclear powers is in its ninth month.

Hindustan Times reported on Monday that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has moved back at least 10,000 soldiers from depth areas in the Ladakh theatre to rear positions but the PLA’s frontline deployments remain unchanged.

Gen Naravane told reporters at his customary annual press conference ahead of Army Day on January 15 that he was hopeful the ongoing dialogue with China would yield an “amicable solution,” but stressed that the operational preparedness of the army was of high order and the force was ready to deal with any eventuality. The two armies are due to hold the ninth round of talks between their senior commanders to resolve the lingering border dispute that has brought chill to ties.

“Eight rounds of talks have taken place between military commanders and each of these rounds has either been preceded or followed by diplomatic level engagement. We will ensure that through the medium of these talks we reach a solution which is acceptable and not detrimental to our interests. And if the talks get prolonged, so be it. We are prepared to hold our ground for as long as it takes to achieve our national goals and interests,” the army chief said.

His remarks convey two important things, said former Northern Army commander Lieutenant General DS Hooda (retd). “First, it is a declaration of resolve and intent to continue with a strong posture along the LAC till the time the matter is resolved to India’s satisfaction and that time is not of paramount importance. Secondly, it also shows that an early resolution appears unlikely, most probably due to the positions of both sides being quite different on the terms of disengagement and de-escalation,” Hooda said.

Naravane said India hoped to reach an agreement with China based on the principles of “mutual and equal security” that would result in disengagement of border troops at friction points and subsequent de-escalation of conflict in the Ladakh theatre.

“On the situation at the northern borders, we are carrying out certain studies.We carry out a periodic review of our operational plans and our strategies to deal with various threats — both external (one front or two fronts) and internal. And based on these reviews, a certain amount of rebalancing does happen...,” the army chief said. He said the army was focused not only on eastern Ladakh but along the border with China — stretching from Ladakh to Uttarakhand to Arunachal Pradesh.

“There is no eyeball-to-eyeball deployment in the central and eastern sectors but friction points are there. In these areas, China has built a lot of infrastructure on its side, including roads and barracks. We monitor all these developments and factor them in when we devise a new strategy,” he said.

He said various Chinese army units and formations come to the Tibetan plateau for their summer training and go back when the winter sets in.

“We should not read too much into their presence or absence in these training areas.These areas are well in depth and are as much as 500 km to 1,500 km away from the border. All the same, we keep an eye on their deployments on the Tibetan plateau because these are the forces that could be mobilised and sent to the borders in 24 to 48 hours…However, what is more important is that in the border areas where there is eyeball-toeyeball confrontation,there has been no reduction of troops.That is where we have to be more concerned and careful,” Gen Naravane said.

On the origin of the border row with China, Naravane said the army had full details of where the PLA was training in the Ladakh theatre last summer but the latter had the “firstmover advantage” that can never be predicted.He said the Indian Army exploited the same advantage last August when it moved swiftly and occupied strategic heights on the southern bank of Pangong Tso.

“They (PLA) come for training every year and we had full details of the areas they were present in. We were regularly monitoring the situation. But suddenly they had the firstmover advantage. This firstmover advantage will always remain, like we had in the month of August. Even though we were in eyeball-to-eyeball contact,China had no clue that we would surprise them,” he said.

The Indian Army swiftly occupied a series of key heights to prevent the PLA from grabbing Indian territory on the southern bank in a stealthy midnight move on August 29.

The Indian Army now controls ridgeline positions on the southern bank of Pangong Tso that allow it to completely dominate the sector and keep an eye on Chinese military activity, with the positions scattered across Rezang La, Reqin pass, Gurung Hill and Magar heights.

The army chief said that there was no doubt that India faced a collusive threat from China and Pakistan.

“This is not just something that was part of some strategic paper or loud thought process.It is very much manifesting itself on the ground. There is indeed increased cooperation between China and Pakistan in both military and non-military fields. And a two-front threat is something that we have to be prepared for. And in dealing with such a threat, we have to see which threat is more serious, prioritise it and deal with it first,” he said.

The two countries together pose a very potent threat that cannot be wished away and the army keeps that element in mind during its strategic planning, he said.

The army chief said that the force was reducing its footprint in the North-east with the security situation there improving manifold in recent years. He said one brigade had been relieved of counter-insurgency duties and two more would follow suit. “We are drawing down in the Northeast.It will help us focus more on our primary task, which is dealing with external threats,” he said. On a recent controversial one-man study — published by a think tank — that said half of the army was under stress, Naravane said it was based on a highly inadequate sample size of just 400 people. “For 99% accuracy, the sample size should have been 19,000.” On a lighter note, he said maybe there is stress in the army and “I am also stressed”.Stress is not always bad as it can also get work done, he said, adding that measures were in place to deal with the problem.