Indian and Chinese commanders in western sector hold talks despite Tawang clash

Indian and Chinese corps commanders held talks in the western sector despite the unarmed clash in Tawang between the two militaries on December 9.

At the 17th round of Corps Commander Level talks that were held at the Chushul-Moldo border meeting point on the Chinese side on December 20, the two sides agreed to maintain security and stability on the ground in the Western Sector.

A statement by the Ministry of External Affairs said that the two sides agreed to stay in close contact, maintain dialogue through military and diplomatic channels and work out a mutually acceptable resolution of the remaining issues at the earliest.

“Building on the progress made after the last meeting on 17th July 2022, the two sides exchanged views on the resolution of the relevant issues along the LAC in the Western Sector in an open and constructive manner,” the ministry added.

The two sides had a frank and in-depth discussion, keeping in line with the guidance provided by the State Leaders to work for the resolution of the remaining issues at the earliest which would help in the restoration of peace and tranquillity along the LAC in the Western Sector and enable progress in bilateral relations.

India has maintained that the India-China relationship can be normalised only if Chinese troops pull back to their original positions following their intrusions at several points in May 2020 in eastern Ladakh. Starting from the 1993 peace and tranquillity accord, India and China have signed several documents and protocols for keeping the LAC calm pending the final settlement of the boundary question.

The latest round of talks followed a recent border clash in the Yangtse area of the Tawang sector in Arunachal Pradesh. On December 9, PLA troops tried to transgress LAC in this area in a bid to unilaterally change the status quo.

Delivering a statement in Parliament on the incident, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh informed both Houses of parliament that the Chinese attempt was contested by Indian troops in a firm and resolute manner.

The face-off led to a physical scuffle in which the Indian Army bravely prevented the PLA from transgressing into our territory and compelled them to return to their posts.

The scuffle led to injuries to a few personnel on both sides. He informed both Houses that there were no fatalities or serious casualties on the Indian side.

Due to the timely intervention of Indian military commanders, PLA soldiers went back to their locations. As a follow-up of the incident, the local Commander in the area held a Flag Meeting with his counterpart on December 11 to discuss the issue pursuing established mechanisms.

The Chinese side was asked to refrain from such actions and maintain peace and tranquillity along the border. The Defence Minister also said that the issue was also taken up with the Chinese side through diplomatic channels.

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