Agreement reached with China on disengagement along Pangong Lake in eastern Ladakh: Rajnath Singh tells Parliament

File image: Indian Army trucks in Ladakh region (Image: AP Photo)

Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh informed Parliament on February 11 that India and China have agreed to disengagement on the northern and southern banks of the Pangong Lake in eastern Ladakh. The two sides have been locked in a stand-off along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the region since May 2020.

“Our sustained talks with China have led to agreement on disengagement on the north and south banks of Pangong Lake. After this agreement, India-China will remove forward deployments in a phased, coordinated manner,” Singh said.

China will keep its troops to the east of Finger 8 at the north bank of Pangong Lake and India will keep its troops at its permanent base near Finger 3, Singh said.

"These are mutual and reciprocal steps and any structures that had been built by both sides since April 2020 in both north and south bank area will be removed and the landforms will be restored," Singh added.

Speaking in the Rajya Sabha, Singh said that some issues regarding deployment at the LAC are yet to be resolved. He added that bilateral relations between the two nations can only develop, and the border dispute can only be resolved, through dialogue.

“China has positioned heavy artillery and large number of soldiers along the LAC. Our forces have also adequately and effectively done counter deployments,” Singh reiterated, adding that Indian forces continue to be positioned along the border despite harsh weather conditions.

The defence minister informed the Upper House that India has asked China to accept and respect the LAC, not take any steps to unilaterally change the status quo at the border and follow the rules of engagement, and stated that all compromises should be completely agreed upon by both sides.

This came a day after the Chinese defence ministry announced that frontline soldiers from India and China at the southern and northern banks of the Pangong Tso in eastern Ladakh had started synchronised and organised disengagement from February 10.

“This move is in accordance with the consensus reached by both sides at the 9th round of China-India Corps Commander Level Meeting,” Chinese Ministry of National Defence’s Spokesperson Senior Colonel Wu Qian had said in the statement. India had not immediately comment on the matter.

Singh is also expected to address the Lok Sabha about the “present situation in Eastern Ladakh” at 5.30 pm on February 11.

Both sides have deployed thousands of troops along the LAC since May 2020 when border tensions started simmering between the two neighbours – especially along three friction points in the eastern Ladakh region.

The LAC is the de-facto border between the two countries in the region. In June 2020, Indian soldiers were killed in the Galwan Valley as the stand-off escalated into a violent face-off. While there were fatalities on the Chinese side too, the number was not revealed by Beijing.

Both sides are known to have stationed heavy artillery and deployed fighter aircraft in close proximity to the LAC as a precautionary measure even as they work towards disengagement.