India, China to soon hold military talks to resolve border issues

Rajnath Singh. File Pic/AFP

India and China will soon hold the 12th round of Corps Commander level talks at Chushul to iron out the agreement for the next phase of disengagement in Eastern Ladakh.

Sources said that China had expressed their availability for military commander level talks on July 26, but India has asked for fresh dates as the Indian forces are occupied with Kargil Vijay Diwas events.

Indian military delegates will meet to discuss disengagement at the friction areas such as Hot Springs, Gogra and the 900 sq km Depsang plains.

The build-up in Depsang was not being considered part of the current standoff that started in May last year as escalations here took place in 2013. India has insisted during the recent military commander meetings to resolve all the issues along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

"The initial attempt will be to resolve Gogra and Hot Springs. Finding a solution to Depsang might be tricky and take longer time," said an army officer familiar with the developments.

It's been three months since the 11th round of talks between the two countries. During the 11th round of Corps Commander level talks, the focus was on disengagement in the friction points like Gogra, Hot Springs and Depsang.

On February 20, Indian and Chinese military held the 10th round of dialogue to de-escalate tension along the LAC.

China has been enhancing military infrastructure across the LAC. Looking at it, India has changed its posture towards China, and unlike its previous defensive approach that placed a premium on fending on Chinese aggression, India is now catering military options to strike back and has reoriented its military accordingly.

India has reoriented around 50,000 troops whose main focus is on the disputed borders with China.

This reorientation of the troops will lessen the number of soldiers dedicated solely to Pakistan, while at the same time, more acclimatised troops who can be shifted from the northern border to the western border with Pakistan will be available to Indian military planners.

This gives the Indian defence establishment a higher level of maneuverability and flexibility vis-a-vis its neighbours.

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