Highlights
- Indian side could move from the friction point southeast towards the Karam Singh Hill feature
- Chinese could move north towards the point 5170 hill feature located on their side of the LAC
- India has been looking at complete disengagement of troops from the friction points in the sector
India-China standoff: India and China could possibly see disengagement of troops from Patrolling Point 15 in the near future, sources have said. During the 16th round of Corps Commander-level talks held at the Chushul-Moldo border meeting point on the Indian side of the Line of Actual Control, some positive movement has been agreed upon between the two sides on the disengagement issue.
According to a report with news agency ANI, sources have informed that it is likely that the Indian side could move from the friction point southeast towards the Karam Singh Hill feature, while the Chinese could move north towards the point 5170 hill feature located on their side of the LAC.
The Indian delegation at the talks was led by Lt-Gen Anindya Sengupta, the commander of the Leh-based 14 Corps, while the Chinese team was headed by South Xinjiang Military District Chief Major General Yang Lin.
China-India Corps Commander Level Meeting was held in a "constructive and forward-looking manner", Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told a media briefing while replying to the question that there was no breakthrough at the talks.
"They had a candid and in-depth exchange of views..., in keeping with the guidance provided by the State Leaders to work for the resolution of the remaining issues at the earliest," Zhao said.
Since May 2020, when the Chinese military tried to aggressively change the status quo on LAC in eastern Ladakh, both sides have been deployed opposite each other near Patrolling Point 15 which has emerged as a friction point.
India has been looking at complete disengagement of troops from the friction points and moving back troops to the pre-May, 2020 situation in the entire sector.
The last disengagement of troops on the LAC took place a year ago which led to the limited resolution of the standoff at Patrol Point 17A in Gogra. India and China also disengaged troops from both banks of Pangong Tso.
The Indian Army responded strongly to the Chinese aggression in 2020 and moved multiple formations toward the Ladakh sector to bolster its preparedness.
The Army has now allotted the Mathura-based 1 Strike Corps to the Northern borders while formations from all around the sector are holding their summer exercises there to keep a check on the People's Liberation Army's activities across the Line of Actual Control.
(With inputs from ANI)
