India returns to patrol a disputed stretch on the border with China

Published:

Nov 6, 2024 04:08 GMT

Indian soldiers entered Depsang, a high mountain area, for the first time since the clashes with China in 2020.

Indian military they communicated on networks on Monday that they had carried out patrolling on the Depsang plateau, one of five tension points along the India-China border, for the first time since the deadly 2020 clashes in the Ladakh region.

The mission was possible after the two nations agreed last October to resume patrols in that area and in Demchok on the basis of an agreement reached prior to the aforementioned dispute. “This is another positive step towards maintaining peace and tranquility on the Line of Current Control,” said the Indian Army’s Fire and Fury Corps in X.

According to indian mediathe timing of commencement and frequency of patrols in other ‘buffer zones’, which are Galwan River Valley, Pangong Lake, Gogra River and Hot Springs area, are yet to be coordinated.

Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar praised bilateral efforts to ease tensions at a news conference in Canberra, Australia, on Tuesday, saying it was a “positive development.” However, he said, Beijing and New Delhi still have “other challenges to address.”

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping held their first bilateral meeting in almost five years in October on the agenda of the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia. They decided then that their heads of diplomatic services and national security advisers would hold a detailed meeting to continue moving forward with the agreements.

Modi emphasized in Kazan the importance of “properly managing differences and disputes and not allowing them to disturb peace and tranquility,” while Xi emphasized that the two sides should shore up communication and cooperation, as well as properly manage differences and disagreements.