According to the MEA, reestablishing calm and tranquility as well as respect for the LAC is an “essential basis” for reestablishing bilateral ties to their previous state.
In an attempt to end the more than four-year border impasse along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, China and India conducted “constructive” and “forward-looking” diplomatic discussions on Wednesday, although it was evident that little progress had been made.
Restoring calm and tranquility, together with respect for the Legal Agreement on the Great Lakes (LAC), are “essential basis” for restoring normalcy in bilateral ties, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
A few days prior, in Vientiane, the capital of Lao PDR, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in a bilateral meeting. The discussions took place in Delhi within the framework of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC).
As per the MEA, the meeting’s discussion was “in-depth, constructive, and forward-looking”. It was agreed upon by both parties that they must work together to maintain peace and serenity on the ground by following pertinent bilateral agreements and procedures.
Still, there was no overt sign of a breakthrough in the negotiations.
Hong Liang, the director general of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Boundary and Oceanic Department, headed the Chinese delegation.
According to the MEA, Liang also made a call to Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri.
Beijing hosted the previous round of WMCC negotiations in March.
“Further to discussions between the two foreign ministers in their recent meetings at Astana and Vientiane, the two sides reviewed the current situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with a view to finding an early resolution of the outstanding issues,” the ministry said.
“Restoration of peace and tranquillity, and respect for the LAC are an essential basis for restoration of normalcy in bilateral relations,” it stated.
“They agreed on the need to jointly uphold peace and tranquillity on the ground in the border areas by relevant bilateral agreements, protocols and understandings reached between the two governments,” stated the statement.
“The meeting’s conversation was in-depth, helpful, and futuristic. It stated that both parties had decided to keep up the momentum via the formal diplomatic and military channels.
Gourangalal Das, the MEA’s Joint Secretary for East Asia, headed the Indian team at the WMCC’s thirty-first conference.
On July 25, in Vientiane, discussions were place between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang and External Affairs Minister Jaishankar, concurrently with ASEAN-related meetings.
The necessity of working with “purpose and urgency” to achieve total disengagement at the earliest at the remaining friction sites along the LAC in eastern Ladakh was agreed upon by both ministers during the meetings.
On July 4, the two foreign ministers held a bilateral meeting in Astana on the fringes of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) annual conference.
During the discussion, Jaishankar reiterated India’s steadfast belief that mutual respect, shared interests, and reciprocal sensitivity must form the foundation of the two sides’ relationship.
The Indian and Chinese armed forces have been engaged in a stalemate since May 2020. Despite their disengagement from several locations of contention, the border dispute has not yet been fully resolved.
After a devastating battle in the Galwan Valley in June 2020—the first severe military combat between the two sides in decades—the ties between the two countries drastically deteriorated.
India has consistently argued that normal relations with China are contingent upon peace prevailing in the border regions.
To end the deadlock, the two parties have had 21 rounds of discussions at the level of the Corps Commander.
The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has been under pressure from India to leave the Demchok and Depsang regions.
The last round of high-level military discussions took place in February between the two parties.
