Chinese troops exchange Diwali sweets after border disengagement
Chinese troops exchange Diwali sweets after border disengagement
In the lead upto PM Modi’s visit to Russia for the BRICS summit where he was to hold a bilateral with China’s Xi Jinping, India-China patrolling agreement was announced.
Indian and Chinese troops exchanged Diwali sweets on five locations long the Line of Actual Control, including two in Ladakh. This comes a day after the two sides wrapped up military disengagement from the Depsang and Demchok areas, in line with last week’s patrolling agreement.
Sweets was exchanged at Chushul Maldo and Daulat Beg Oldi in Ladakh, Banchha (near Kibutu) and Bumla in Arunachal Pradesh, and Nathula in Sikkim on Thursday 31 October.
The patrolling deal called for removal of military personnel and infrastructure, including temporary camps, from the Depsang plains and Demchok, and withdrawal of troops to pre-April 2020 positions.
The deal, hopefully ends nearly four years of military and diplomatic tension triggered by skirmishes and violent clashes in the Pangong Lake and Galwan regions in May-June 2020.
Indian Army sources on Wednesday revealed the verification process so as to cross-check that China had, in fact, withdrawn its troops, is ongoing, and that ground-level commanders from each side will inform the other prior to regular patrols “to avoid miscommunication”. Significantly, both Delhi and Beijing will each continue to have surveillance options in Depsang and Demchok.
Reportedly, the agreement was announced on Monday and, on the following Monday, a satellite image from the Depsang plains – from the ‘Y’ Junction – showed four vehicles and two tents.
On the disengagement process Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi said that ithis week the Indian military is “trying to restore trust” in its Chinese counterpart.
The General added that this refurbishment of trust will happen once we are able to see each other, and convince and reassure each other, that we are not creeping into buffer zones that have been created.
De-escalation of military tension in the area will be taken up after disengagement is over.
However, External Affairs Minister
S Jaishankar refused to give a timeline for the
de-escalation, saying only it would not happen till Delhi is sure that its Beijing counterparts had honoured their side of the deal.
De-escalation is still a concern in other areas, including the Gogra-Hot Springs area in Ladakh, after Indian and Chinese forces backed down in September last year. However, intel indicates China continues to hold large swathes of Indian territory to the north, in the Depsang plains area.
Depsang is seen as critical for India since it provides access to the airstrip at Daulat Beg Oldie and prevents Chinese troops from threatening vital logistics centres in the area. Demchok, meanwhile is divided in two by the LAC; India controls the western part, which is claimed by China.
The India-China patrolling agreement was announced hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Russia for the BRICS summit where he would hold a bilateral with China’s Xi Jinping.
Speaking after it was confirmed, PM Modi told the Chinese leader, that it should be our priority to ensure there is peace and stability along our border”, and stressed the need for “mutual trust, mutual respect”.
News Edit KV Raman
