India, China agree to ensure complete disengagement of troops along LAC

NSA Ajit Doval talks to Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi over phone

[File] Indian Army trucks move along a highway leading to Ladakh, at Gagangeer in Kashmir's Ganderbal district | Reuters [File] Indian Army trucks move along a highway leading to Ladakh, at Gagangeer in Kashmir's Ganderbal district | Reuters

It won't be eyeball to eyeball. The crisis may be far from over, but both India and China are sending out messages of a thaw. Amid reports of  “rearward'' movement of vehicles of People’s Liberation Army, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval spoke to Wang Yi, Chinese State Councillor and Minister of Foreign Affairs, over phone on Monday. 

Both Doval and Yi agreed to ensure “complete disengagement of the troops'' along the LAC and “de-escalation'' along the border areas at the earliets for "full restoration of peace and tranquility''.

“The two Special Representatives agreed that both sides should take guidance from the consensus of the leaders that maintenance of peace and tranquillity in the India-China border areas was essential for the further development of our bilateral relations and that two sides should not allow differences to become disputes,'' a read-out from the ministry of external affairs said.

The decision to active the SR dialogue mechanism is a signal to bring the temperatures down. The last round of SR level talks—the 22nd round—happened in December 2019.

It was decided to continue the SR-level conversation “to ensure full and enduring restoration of peace and tranquillity in the India-China border areas in accordance with the bilateral agreements and protocols'', the statement said. Both India and China have agreed to “strictly respect and observe the Line of Actual Control” and not to take any unilateral action to alter the status quo. The two countries have also agreed to work together to “avoid any incident in the future that could disturb peace and tranquility in border areas,'' the statement read.

While there is a signal to de-escalate on both sides, how “peace and tranquility'' will remain is still unclear. The diplomatic and military engagements to defuse the situation may be progressing, but it is clear that China is unlikely to give up its claim on Galwan. The read-out of the conversation between Doval and Yi by the Chinese foreign ministry has reiterated the claim. 

Claiming that India and China's relationship has been tested by the “storm'' and that today's development hasn't come “easily'', the press release said, “China will continue to vigorously defend its territorial sovereignty and safeguard peace and tranquility in the border areas.”

So, the battle of narratives continues between the two countries. China continues its version that the clash was provoked by India.

Both read-outs do, however, endorse that there should be efforts to promote normal exchanges and cooperation between the two countries. The conversation was “frank and in-depth'', said the MEA release. The Chinese foreign affairs ministry used exactly the same words.

The conversation between Doval and Yi comes a few days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's surprise visit to Ladakh to address the soldiers. In his speech—in a direct reference to China—Modi declared that “the era of colonial expansion is over''.

“In the previous centuries, expansionism has done the greatest harm to humanity and has tried to destroy humanity. The obsession with expansion has always posed a threat to world peace...let's not forget, history is a witness to the fact that such forces have been erased or forced to relent,'' he said.