New Delhi:
Indian and Chinese troops have exchanged Diwali sweets on five locations long the Line of Actual Control, including two in Ladakh. This comes a day after the two sides completed military disengagement from the Depsang and Demchok areas, in line with last week’s patrolling agreement.
Sweets have been exchanged at Chushul Maldo and Daulat Beg Oldi in Ladakh, Banchha (near Kibutu) and Bumla in Arunachal Pradesh, and Nathula in Sikkim.
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, will end 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.
These clashes included the death of 20 Indian soldiers in Galwan in June.
Indian Army sources told NDTV Wednesday the verification process – to cross-check that China had, in fact, withdrawn its troops, is ongoing, and that ground-level commanders from each side will inform the other prior to regular patrols “to avoid miscommunication”.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.
Depsang, Demchok Disengagement Pics
Last week NDTV accessed the first satellite images of the disengagement process.
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.
NDTV Exclusive | 1st Images Of Chinese Troops’ Disengagement In Ladakh
A second image, taken four days later, showed Indian military tents taken down and vehicles moving away, while images from Demchok showed temporary Chinese structures removed by October 25.
“Trying To Restore Trust”
On the disengagement process Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi said this week the Indian military is “trying to restore trust” in its Chinese counterpart.
“This (rebuilding 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,” the General said.
READ | “Trying To Restore Trust”: Army Chief On India-China Patrolling Deal
De-escalation of military tension in the area will be taken up after disengagement is over.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar declined 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.
READ | Troops’ Disengagement First, De-Escalation Next: S Jaishankar
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.
“After de-escalation, how to manage the borders will be discussed,” he said in Mumbai.
READ | PM Modi, Xi Welcome “Complete Disengagement” Along LAC
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, Mr Modi told the Chinese leader, “It should be our priority to ensure there is peace and stability along our border”, and stressed the need for “mutual trust, mutual respect”.
