‘ Will talk Ladakh A to Z, not just on Pangong Tso’

India has clearly told China it will talk about disengagement in the whole of Ladakh, starting from Depsang plains to Pangong Tso, said sources. India also warned China that Indian soldiers will fire back if PLA troops try to outnumber them like in the Galwan Valley on June 15.

The sources said China was not ready to accept that it first transgressed across the Line of Actual Control ( LAC) and is insisting that the talks be held on disengagement from the south bank of Pangong Tso where India has now occupied the strategic heights.

However, India’s stand is clear: that “we will talk from A to Z” in Ladakh, the sources said.

Sources said China had started breaking protocol after Doklam, that not more than 15- 20 soldiers will patrol the LAC. But the Chinese Army began

■ Continued from Page 1 to take place soon,” he added.

“I would like to highlight that this is the first joint press release after any senior commanders’ meeting. As such, it reflects the stated commitment of both sides to disengage along the Line of Actual Control. As we have pointed out earlier, disengagement is a complex process that requires the redeployment of troops by each side towards their regular posts on their respective sides of the Line of Actual Control. This would require mutually agreed reciprocal actions,” he said, while underlining that the foreign ministers of India and China had reached an agreement during their meeting in Moscow that the two sides should continue the dialogue and quickly and comprehensively disengage in all the friction areas.

Mr Srivastava said the sixth meeting gave the senior commanders an opportunity to have a candid and in- depth exchange of views on the urgent need to stabilise situation along the Line of Actual Control.

The two sides have also decided to strengthen ground communication to avoid any further misunderstandings and misjudgments, stop sending more troops to the frontline, refrain from unilaterally changing the situation on the ground, and avoid taking any action that may complicate the situation, India and China said in their statements on Wednesday after the talks.

On Thursday, external affairs minister S. Jaishankar, while speaking at an event, said the “situation at the Line of Actual Control is unprecedented and it is one facet of a larger phenomenon for which both have to sit down and find a solution”.