(TibetanReview.net, Aug02’24) – After two back-to-back meetings between their foreign ministers during the month, India and China held their latest round of foreign-office led border talks on Jul 31. Both sides have spoken of the talks in positive terms but different hues while reporting no progress. Meanwhile China has completed the construction and began using a strategic 400-metre bridge, connecting the northern and southern banks of the Pangong Tso (Lake) inside the India-claimed lines in eastern Ladakh, reported telegraphindia.com Jul 31.
Indian military veterans have expressed apprehension that China’s latest move confirmed their fears that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) was forcing India to accept the new status quo in the region, the report said.
It also cited security experts as saying the lake-bridge would give China “a strategic edge” in the region as it would allow PLA troops to speedily move between the north and south banks of the lake.
“It is a matter of extreme concern for India. The bridge enhances connectivity between China’s forward and depth forces, underscoring Beijing’s commitment to solidifying its territorial claims against India by modifying the landscape to its advantage,” the report quoted a former major general as saying.
“It has also confirmed our fears that the PLA seems to be forcing India to accept the new status quo in the region,” the unnamed former major general has said.
The report also quoted a retired colonel as saying the Chinese army “has fortified its positions at multiple transgression points in eastern Ladakh”.
“The PLA is forcing India to agree to its reinterpretation of the Line of Actual Control (LAC). India’s capitulation has made restoration of the pre-Apr 2020 status quo difficult,” he has said.
“Previously, the PLA had to navigate the lake’s entire eastern section to reach conflict zones, a lengthy detour that hampered their response time in an active conflict zone,” the financialexpress.com Jul 30 quoted Damien Symon, a satellite imagery expert and researcher with The Intel Lab, as saying.
The bridge is expected to reduce the travel distance between the lake’s banks by approximately 50-100 kilometres, significantly cutting travel time, the report said, citing ndtv.com.
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The Jul 31 discussions held in New Delhi under the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination were the first to take place in India after the 2020 Galwan clashes, said thewire.in Jul 31. It added that there was no sign of a breakthrough again as India and China met for the working mechanism’s 30th round of talks.
While their public statements have not indicated any change in their positions, the frequency of their meetings has raised speculation of a thaw, the report said.
In its press release, India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the “discussion at the meeting was in-depth, constructive and forward-looking”.
It also stated that both agreed to “maintain the momentum through the established diplomatic and military channels,” that they also “reviewed the current situation along the [LAC] with a view to finding an early resolution of the outstanding issues.”
It added that the two sides “agreed on the need to jointly uphold peace and tranquillity on the ground in the border areas in accordance with relevant bilateral agreements, protocols and understandings reached between the two governments.”
On its part, the Chinese foreign ministry stated that based on the “important consensus” reached by the recent meeting between the two countries’ foreign ministers, the two sides agreed to “focus on specific issues related to the China-India border, take care of each other’s reasonable concerns, and reach a solution acceptable to both sides as soon as possible”.
The press note further stated that the two sides agreed to “strengthen the construction of negotiation mechanisms, accelerate the negotiation process, and achieve a turning point in the border situation as soon as possible”.
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India’s aim in holding these talks is to achieve “complete disengagement” along the LAC. However, China has characterized the meeting’s agenda as promoting the “transition of the border situation into a normalized phase of control”, report noted.
Indian and Chinese troops have disengaged from some places along the LAC after the 2020 clashes after a series of talks at different levels, but the Chinese have refused to undertake any disengagement at two places, namely Demchok and Depsang plains, where soldiers on both sides continue to be in a faceoff situation.
India’s position remains that overall bilateral ties cannot return to normalcy until the border issue is resolved. On the other hand, China insists that the border issue should not overshadow their broader relationship.
India’s fear might be that accepting China’s position would only lead to further Salami slicing of its territory by continued creeping intrusions by Chinese troops.