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Context

• Even after three years of 2020 standoff between Indian armed forces and China in Galwan valley of Eastern Ladakh, there has been a minimal progress in achieving the objective of disengagement and de-escalation and restoration of status quo ante in the region.

About the 2020 standoff

• On June 15, 2020, there was suspicion of incursion by Chinese along the Galwan valley of LAC.
• When a troop Indian army went on to inspect these Chinese Camps there were skirmishes between the troops of two forces, which left 20 Indian soldiers and some unknown number of Chinese army dead.
• Since the standoff there were a number of Skirmishes and minor instances of firing along the Line of Actual Control.
• Number of Military level and ministerial level talks have been held to resolve the issue but no actual progress has taken place towards the direction of objective of disengagement and de-escalation and restoration of status quo ante in the region.

What India wants?

• India wants restoration of status quo ante in the region leading to troops returning to locations before the faceoff began in May.

What China wants?

• Chains claimed that the Galwan Valley is located on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control in the west section of the China-India boundary.
• They further claim that for many years, “the Chinese border troops have been patrolling and on duty in this region.”
• They refuses to accept the demand for status quo quo ante in the LAC claiming that the situation was created by India by illegally trespassing

What are the friction points in LAC?

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Demchok and Depsang

• Demchok and Depsang are two friction points currently unresolved between two countries
• On the Depsang Plains and Demchok, India maintains that they are the two additional friction points, but China has refused to accept it.
• China has set up tents in the Chardang Nala area of Demchok.
• Depsang is also close to the Karakoram pass overlooking the strategic Saltoro ridge and Siachen glacier, the world's highest battlefield.
• In Depsang Plains, Chinese troops have been blocking Indian Army patrols from going up to the PPs 10, 11, 11A, 12 and 13, beyond the Y junction.
• The airfield at DBO is only accessible by the 255 km-long Darbuk-Shyok-DBO (DSDBO) road. A plan for an alternate route across Saser La, which has an ancient trade route, is in the progress.
• Chinese build up in this area threatens Indian positions at DO and also brings Chinese troops closer to the DSDBO road.

Finger points

• Chinese troops made inroads from Finger 8 up to Finger 4 in the North Block which blocked Indian patrols.
• There are eight finger points in Pangong Tso region on LAC, of which India holds its place till Finger 4 but has claims in the territory till Finger 8 as per alignment of the LAC.

Infrastructure and connectivity

• Both India and China have been building infrastructure and connectivity along with deployment of large troops and heavy equipment along the 3,488 km-long LAC.
• China had moved a large number of troops and equipment close to the LAC. They have also made incursions to Indian territory in some places.

Buffer zones

• Buffer zones have been created at the friction points as per the understanding reached at the Corps Commanders-level talks.
• It was decided that both sides would pull back at an equal distance from the friction points to prevent any fresh flare-ups.
• It was also decided that no patrolling would be undertaken by both sides till an agreement on disengagement and de-escalation is reached.
• After the agreement the two sides have to work out new patrolling norms to maintain peace and tranquillity.

Progress since the Galwan standoff

Disengagements

After the Corps commander level talks in 2020, the PLA (People's Liberation Army)  and the Indian army took following major disengagements

• In the first phase of disengagement both sides pulled back troops by equal distance from Patrolling Points (PP) 14 in Galwan valley and PP15 in Gogra-Hot Springs.
• In February 2021, they completed disengagement in the north and south banks of Pangong Tso.
• In September 2022, Armies of India and China today completed the disengagement process in the Gogra Heights-Hot Springs area near Patrolling Point-15 in eastern Ladakh sector.
• The two sides have also completed verification of each other's positions after pulling back troops from the friction point.
• With these steps, armies of both India and China have completed the disengagement process in the eastern Ladakh sector.
• However, issues in the Daulat Beg Oldie sector and the Demchok area where Indian patrols are still being objected to by the Chinese military.

18th round of Corps commander’s talk

• The 18th round of Corps Commander talks was held at the Chushul Moldo meeting point on the Chinese side on April 23, 2023.

Meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border affairs (WMCC)

• May 31, 2023, India and China held the 27th Meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border affairs (WMCC) in New Delhi.
• The meeting made no headway in this regard but the two sides agreed to hold the 19th round of Corps.
• India is now at a dominating position in the south bank of Pangong Tso with Rechin La and Rezang la at its command.
• To ensure that the Chinese are fully honouring the understanding reached between two countries, verification by aerial monitoring using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) as well as satellites is being undertaken regularly.

Way ahead

• Meeting of Corps commanders should continue on a periodic basis.
• Diplomatic channels should be used with proactive engagements of diplomats and ministers from both sides.
• Multilateral forums such as SCO, said to be Asian NATO can be potential platform for both the countries to resolve the differences.
• Special representative mechanism of India and China on border dispute, established in 2004 should be leveraged to resolve the disputes.
• Both countries should disengage from friction points and buffer zones should be created till the issue of LAC is finally resolved.

Conclusion

India and China are two giant Asian economies and their economies are the fastest growing economies of the world. They must work together and stand united by resolving differences to make the Asian Century a success.  Both countries need to walk through the Wuhan and Mamallapuram summit’s principles  and countries should ensure that the differences do not lead to disputes.

PRACTICE QUESTION Q) What are the challenges in resolving the border disputes between India and China and what are the progress being made in that direction by the two countries? Critically evaluate. (250 words)

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