India, China Reach Agreement On Patrolling, Disengagement Along LAC In Eastern Ladakh: MEA

India-China Row: The standoff between the Indian and Chinese armies has been ongoing since June 2020 after the violent clash in the Galwan Valley.

India-China Border Crisis: In a big breakthrough, India and China have agreed to resolve their border crisis going since 2020. Addressing media today on patrolling at the Line of Actual Control, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said that after multiple rounds of talks, both countries have agreed to disengage from the contentious points. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said that Indian and Chinese negotiators have reached an agreement on patrolling along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.

"As a result of the discussions that have taken place over the last several weeks, an agreement has been arrived at on patroling arrangements along the line of actual control in the India-China border area and this is leading to dis-engagement and eventually a resolution of the issues that had arisen in these areas in 2020," said Misri.

The foreign secretary said the Indian and Chinese negotiators were in touch over the last few weeks to resolve the remaining issues. It is understood that the agreement pertains to patrolling in Depsang and Demchok areas. The announcement on the breakthrough comes a day ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's travel to the Russian city of Kazan to attend the BRICS Summit.

The standoff between the Indian and Chinese armies has been ongoing since June 2020 after the violent clash in the Galwan Valley. The relations between the two countries deteriorated with Indian openly admitting that the relations are not coordial. 

Earlier last month, after four years of maintaining their presence in the Galwan Valley, China had ordered the withdrawal of its troops from the area. On September 13, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that troops have withdrawn from four locations in eastern Ladakh, including the Galwan Valley. While mentioning the troop withdrawal from these four points in eastern Ladakh, including Galwan, China’s Foreign Ministry stated on Friday that during their meeting in Russia, India and China agreed to work together to create a conducive environment for improving bilateral relations.