(TibetanReview.net, Jun26’21) – There was no agreement on further disengagement of troops in the border areas of Ladakh when senior officials from India and China met on Jun 25 for another round of diplomatic talks under the framework of Working Mechanism for Consultation & Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC). However, both sides have agreed to continue dialogue to reach a mutually acceptable solution, reported the timesofindia.com Jun 26.
An official Indian statement was quoted as saying, “The two sides agreed to maintain dialogue and communication through the diplomatic and military mechanisms to reach a mutually acceptable solution for complete disengagement from all friction points so as to ensure full restoration of peace and tranquillity to enable progress in the bilateral relations.”
China has refused to ease up its deployment of troops in eastern Ladakh while India has refused to move the bilateral relationship without a full disengagement in the border areas.
Agreeing to ensure stability on the ground and prevent any untoward incident, the two sides decided to hold the next (12th) round of the senior commanders’ meeting (military talks) at an early date “to achieve the objective of complete disengagement from all the friction points along the LAC in the western sector in accordance with the existing bilateral agreements and protocols”.
China’s official news.cgtn.com Jun 25 said the two sides agreed to actively prepare for the 12th round of corps commander-level talks and continue working towards further de-escalation at the border.
It said the consensus was reached at the 22nd meeting of working mechanism for consultation and coordination on China-India border affairs, which was co-chaired by Director-General of the Department of Boundary and Ocean Affairs of the Foreign Ministry Hong Liang and Additional Secretary of the East Asia Division of the Ministry of External Affairs of India Naveen Srivastava.
