Commander-level LAC talks on Jan 12

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 7

Three months after India and China blamed each other for the breakdown of military commander-level talks, commanders of the two sides are set to meet again.

According to sources, the meeting has been scheduled for January 12. This will be the first meeting at the level of Lt Generals after October 10 and the 14th round of senior military-level talks since June 6, 2020. Pullback from military posturing along the 832-km LAC in eastern Ladakh will be the main agenda. The existing impasse is over Patrolling Point-15 (PP-15), also referred to as Hot Springs, besides the Depsang Bulge, a 972-sq km plateau. Both places are in eastern Ladakh.

Troop build-up on either side, for now, shows no signs of getting back to pre-April 2020 levels. On October 10, the meeting ended in a deadlock with both countries blaming each other. A meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs held in November laid out the agenda for talks again. On January 1, troops of either side exchanged sweets at the Line of Actual Control.

Pullback on agenda

• Pullback from the 832-km LAC in eastern Ladakh will be the main agenda of the talks
• The existing impasse is over Patrolling Point-15, also referred to as Hot Springs, besides Depsang Bulge