Ladakh standoff: Peace at the India-China border is essential for bilateral ties, says MEA
Military talks were held at the Border Personnel Meeting Point in Moldo on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control in Eastern Ladakh on Saturday.
The Ministry of External Affairs on Sunday said that India and China have agreed to “peacefully resolve the situation in the border areas in accordance with various bilateral agreements”. The statement came a day after the two sides held high-level military talks in order to resolve the border standoff.
The military talks were held at the Border Personnel Meeting Point in Moldo on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control in Eastern Ladakh on Saturday, NDTV reported. The talks were held between Leh-based 14 Corps Commander Lieutenant General Harinder Singh and South Xinjiang Military District Commander Major General Liu Lin, according to the Hindustan Times.
“It took place in a cordial and positive atmosphere,” the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement. “Both sides agreed to peacefully resolve the situation in the border areas in accordance with various bilateral agreements and keeping in view the agreement between the leaders that peace and tranquility in the India-China border regions is essential for the overall development of bilateral relations.”
The foreign ministry said that both the sides noted that this year marked the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. They agreed that an early resolution would contribute to the further development of the relationship.
The statement also said that both the nations will continue the military and diplomatic engagements to resolve the situation and to ensure peace and tranquility in the border areas.
Over the last three weeks, Chinese troops have clashed with the Indian Army at several points along the Line of Actual Control. India and China do not share a defined and demarcated border. Instead, there is the Line of Actual Control, which stretches thousands of kilometres from Ladakh all the way to Arunachal Pradesh.
On June 2, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had admitted that a “sizeable number” of Chinese troops have moved into eastern Ladakh. He said India was taking all steps necessary to deal with the situation. This was the Indian government’s first acknowledgement that Chinese troops had entered Indian territory.
Singh had highlighted that the 74-day standoff in Doklam between the two countries was resolved through talks, and talks at the military and diplomatic levels were on to resolve the current problem.
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