China Confirms Agreement With India To End Standoff In Eastern Ladakh

Jian didn't make any comments about the bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping on the margins of the BRICS summit in Russia's Kazan.

China has confirmed that it has reached an agreement with India to end the standoff between the two armies in eastern Ladakh, PTI reported. China's reaction comes a day after India announced it has reached an agreement with China on patrolling along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, in a major breakthrough in ending the over four-year-long military standoff between the two armies.

"Over a recent period, China and India have been in close communication through diplomatic and military channels on issues related to the China-India border," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told a media briefing in Beijing.

He said China will work with India to implement these resolutions going forward.

However, Jian didn't make any comments about the bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping on the margins of the BRICS summit in Russia's Kazan. "We will keep you updated if anything comes up," he told reporters.

Earlier, multiple sources told ABP Live that both the Indian Army as well as the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) are looking to disengage from the remaining points where the faceoff is currently going on, including in the Demchok area and Depsang Plains.

The "patrolling arrangement" was alluded to at a media briefing by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri on Monday. Under the proposed agreement, the sources added, the Indian Army will be able to resume patrolling in Demchok as well as Depsang, which used to happen prior to the 2020 standoff, sources said.

China has reportedly been blocking Indian patrols from accessing certain patrolling points (PP) in the Depsang area, particularly at PP10, PP11, PP12, and PP13, claiming these as part of their territory. Any resolution here would be significant because Depsang has seen clashes previously, such as in 2013, when Chinese forces set up a temporary camp, leading to a standoff.

A similar situation exists in the Charding-Ninglung Nala area of Demchok, which has been inaccessible to both Indian troops as well as graziers. This might also see some relaxation, the sources said. Depsang and Demchok are two highly sensitive areas along the India-China LAC in the Eastern Ladakh region. Both regions have been points of friction between India and China due to their strategic importance and historical claims by both countries.