Indian And Chinese Army Officers Discuss LAC Issues In Daulet Beg Oldi, Ladakh

Indian and Chinese major generals met on Tuesday in Ladakh’s Daulet Beg Oldi sector and talked about border issues that have been going on between the two countries for more than three years along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.

The top-level military talk between the corps leaders of the two armies took place weeks before the talks between the division commanders.

The 18th round of corps commander-level talks on April 23 didn’t lead to a solution, but the Indian Army and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) agreed to keep the Line of Actual Control (LAC) safe and stable, stay in close contact, and keep talking through military and diplomatic channels to find a solution that works for both sides.

It is common for people below the corps commander to talk about border problems, the officials said, asking not to be named. One of the officials said, “Division commanders and brigade commanders often talk with their Chinese counterparts about border issues.”

The two forces pulled their front-line troops back from Patrolling Point-15 in September 2022, which was the last time they broke through the LAC. The pullback of troops happened on July 17, 2022, after the 16th round of talks between corps commanders.

Even though there have been four rounds of withdrawal from Galwan Valley, Pangong Tso, Gogra (PP-17A), and Hot Springs (PP-15), the Indian and Chinese armies still have more than 60,000 troops and modern weapons in the Ladakh theater.

As previously stated, problems at Depsang in the Daulet Beg Oldi sector and Charding Nullah Junction (CNJ) in the Demchok sector are still being talked about.

On April 27, Rajnath Singh, India’s defense minister, talked to his Chinese colleague, General Li Shangfu, about the LAC problem. He emphasized that the violation of existing agreements had hurt India-China relations and that the growth of India-China relations depended on peace and quiet at the borders. Singh told Li that all problems at the LAC had to be solved in line with bilateral agreements and promises that were already in place.

After the talks on April 27, former Northern Army commander Lieutenant General DS Hooda (ret.) said that Singh’s position was the standard Indian one: that the ongoing standoff has hurt bilateral relations and that they can only get better if the PLA stops fighting and pulls back more troops.

“This makes me think that both sides have probably restated their views and that there hasn’t been any real progress. But it’s good that high-level politicians are talking to each other, because the problem will be solved at the political level in the end,” Hooda said.