India-China stalemate continues, fresh talks fail to break log jam on de-escalation along LAC

After the 17th round of talks, the Chinese refused to stand down in the strategically important Depsang Plains and the stand-off, which began in May 2020, has entered its third winter.

Army convoy moving towards LAC | Representational image | ANI file photo

New Delhi: The stalemate between India and China along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) continues with the latest round of Corps Commander level talks failing to achieve any breakthrough over the issue of de-escalation and strategically important Depsang Plains.

During the 17th round of Corps Commander level talks – that took place after a gap of five months and lasted for nearly 10 hours on Tuesday – both sides agreed to maintain the security and stability on the ground in the Western Sector.

The meeting was held days after Chinese troops clashed with Indian soldiers in the tense Yangtse area of Arunachal Pradesh on 9 December.

“Building on the progress made after the last meeting on 17th July 2022, the two sides exchanged views on the resolution of the relevant issues along the LAC in the Western Sector in an open and constructive manner.

“They had a frank and in-depth discussion, keeping in line with the guidance provided by the State Leaders to work for the resolution of the remaining issues at the earliest which would help in restoration of peace and tranquility along the LAC in the Western Sector and enable progress in bilateral relations,” a joint statement released by the two countries said.

It added that the two sides agreed to stay in close contact and maintain dialogue through military and diplomatic channels and “work out a mutually acceptable resolution” for the remaining issues at the earliest.

Is LAC dynamics the new status quo?

Explaining the outcome of the meeting, sources said that there was no immediate outcome to any of the issues flagged by the Indian side, though talks were held in a very constructive manner.

The sources said that while disengagement has taken place at all the friction points in Eastern Ladakh, where tensions had broken out in May 2020, the larger issue of de-escalation remains.

This is because the additional men and equipment that were pumped in by the Chinese continue to remain close to the LAC.

“The Chinese have so far refused to pull back troops to their pre-May 2020 positions. Along with that, they have also refused to stand down from the Depsang Plains and continue to hold objections to certain Indian construction at Demchok,” a source said.

Another set of sources explained that while going back to pre-May 2020 status quo was a key demand, the Chinese are unlikely to do so given the amount of infrastructure they have built on their sides to set up new surface-to-air missiles sites, roads, bridges, heliports and hardened shelters and barracks.

Similarly, it will be difficult for India to pull back as well because there is a huge trust deficit when it comes to China, the sources added.

They said that the current deployment is also giving the Chinese an opportunity to get their soldiers into a real war scenario.

As reported earlier, Chinese soldiers are facing “nervousness, anxiety and fearful emotions” as they undertake unprecedented military activities amid tensions with India and with the US over South China Sea and Taiwan.

A few years back, Chinese President Xi Jinping had said that his military suffers from “peace disease”, which is basically lack of combat experience.

Sources, therefore, said that the new deployment tactics could very well be an initiation process for the Chinese soldiers.