New Delhi: The Indian Army released an official statement after holding 8.5 hours-long military talks with China on Sunday.. This was the 13th round of talks between the countries and the discussions focused on the resolution of the remaining issues along LAC in Eastern Ladakh.
The Indian army said that the Indian side pointed out that the situation along LAC had been caused by unilateral attempts of the Chinese side to alter the status quo and in violation of the bilateral agreements. It was, therefore, necessary that the Chinese side take appropriate steps in the remaining areas so as to restore peace and tranquillity along LAC in the Western Sector, reported ANI.
The army further said that during the meeting, the Indian side made constructive suggestions for resolving the remaining areas but the Chinese side was not agreeable and also could not provide any forward-looking proposals. The meeting thus did not result in the resolution of the remaining areas.
The two sides have agreed to maintain communications and also to maintain stability on the ground. The Indian army further said, "It is our expectation that the Chinese side will take into account the overall perspective of bilateral relations & will work towards early resolution of the remaining issues."
The 13th round of negotiations on disengagement took place more than two months after the last round of talks that resulted in the disengagement of troops from Gogra (Patrol Point-17A).
India has been insisting that the resolution of outstanding issues in all friction points including in Depsang is crucial to see an overall improvement in ties between the two countries.
The Indian delegation at Sunday’s talks was led by Lt Gen PGK Menon, the Commander of the Leh-based 14 Corps.
The fresh negotiation took place in the backdrop of two recent incidents of attempted transgressions by the Chinese troops - one in the Barahoti sector of Uttarakhand and another in the Tawang sector in Arunachal Pradesh.
Around 10 days back, Indian and Chinese troops were engaged in a brief face-off near Yangtse in the Tawang sector of Arunachal Pradesh. The issue was resolved within a few hours following talks between commanders of the two sides as per established protocols, PTI reported.
On August 30, close to 100 soldiers of China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) transgressed the LAC in the Barahoti sector of Uttarakhand and returned from the area after spending a few hours.