India-China military talks today, focus on pullback at Hot Springs

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, October 9

Senior Indian and Chinese military commanders will hold another round of talks on Sunday with focus on further disengagement at the remaining friction points along the 832-km-long Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh.

Also read: Massive infrastructure build-up by China along LAC: Army Chief

This is the first meeting at the level of Lt Generals since July 31 and it will be the 13th round of senior military-level talks between the two sides since June 6 last year. The existing impasse is over PP 15, also referred to as Hot Springs, and the Depsang Bulge, a 972-sq km plateau.

13th round of negotiations

• 10:30 am: Talks commence at China’s Moldo Garrison
• After July 31, this is first meeting at the level of Lt Generals
• It’s 13th round of military-level talks since June 6 last year
• Besides Hot Springs, Depsang pullback likely to be discussed

The talks are scheduled to commence at 10:30 am at the Moldo Garrison of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), China. Moldo, located at the western edge of the Spanggur Tso (lake), faces the Indian garrison at Chushul in eastern Ladakh. The 12th round of talks had taken place on July 31. Days after the talks, the two aides completed the disengagement process in Gogra, which was seen as a significant forward movement towards the restoration of peace and tranquillity in the region.

The 13th round of talks is taking place in the backdrop of two recent incidents of attempted transgressions by the Chinese troops — one in the Barahoti sector of Uttarakhand and another in the Tawang sector in Arunachal Pradesh. Indian and Chinese troops were engaged in a brief face-off near Yangtse in the Tawang sector last week and it was resolved within a few hours .