There was no agreement on further disengagement of troops in the border areas of Ladakh when senior officials from India and China met for another round of diplomatic talks, even though both sides agreed to continue dialogue.
The talks took place under the framework of Working Mechanism for Consultation & Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC). An official statement said, “The two sides agreed to maintain dialogue and communication through the diplomatic and military mechanisms to reach a mutually acceptable solution for complete disengagement from all friction points so as to ensure full restoration of peace and tranquility to enable progress in the bilateral relations.”
China has refused to ease up its deployment of troops in eastern Ladakh while India has refused to move the bilateral relationship forward without a full disengagement in the border areas. The two sides decided to hold the next (12th) round of the senior commanders’ meeting (military talks) at an early date “to achieve the objective of complete disengagement from all the friction points along the LAC in the western sector in accordance with the existing bilateral agreements and protocols”.
In response to questions, MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi had said, “It has been the Chinese actions over the last year, including amassing of a large number of troops close to border areas in the western sector, and trying to unilaterally alter the status quo along the LAC, which have seriously disturbed peace and tranquility in the border areas.
