'We have a difficult…': External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on border dispute with China

Responding to the continuing border issue with China, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that his comment about “75 percent progress” specifically refers to troop disengagement in eastern Ladakh. At the Asia Society Policy Institute, he pointed out that tensions have increased due to China’s breaches of previous agreements and troops mobilization during COVID-19, which led to the armed conflict that has overtaken the bilateral relations.

He said, “We have a difficult history with China. Despite the explicit agreements we had with China, we saw in the middle of COVID-19 that the Chinese moved a large number of forces in violation of these agreements to the line of actual control (LAC). It was likely a mishap would happen, and it did. So, there was a clash, and a number of troops died on either side. That, in a sense, overshadowed the relationship.”

Jaishankar pointed out that although many contentious issues have been effectively addressed, there are still issues regarding the rights of patrolling along the border. He emphasized the need for reducing tensions to improve the overall relations with China, which he said was important for Asia’s future. The latest diplomatic discussions between the two countries sought to reduce tensions and bring relations back to the status quo at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) after the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) on India-China border affairs meeting in Beijing.

The minister again pointed out that only a stable border is enough to restore diplomatic relations, while expressing hope for further diplomatic relations in case of the establishment of peace along the border. All the discussions mentioned as frank, useful, and beneficial, suggest that both parties are willing to keep order and restraint in border zones as provided for in the agreements.

But there has been gradual withdrawal in some of these hotspots including Pangong Lake, and recent withdrawal from Girlra Hot Springs, but there are still disagreements in Depsang Plains and Demchok. Since the stand-off began in the Galwan Valley in June 2020, killing several soldiers from both sides, both countries have stationed around 60,000 troops each on the LAC.