Amid Modi-Xi's thrust on de-escalation, officers conclude talks in Ladakh

Senior Army officers of India and China have concluded their six-day-long marathon talks to resolve the long-pending issues in the Depsang Pains and Demchok area.

The Major General-level talks concluded on a day when Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Johannesburg, South Africa, on the sidelines of the BRICS summit and the two leaders talked about the boundary issue.

"The two sides concluded the six-day long talks today after holding extensive detailed discussions on resolving the issues pending for many years now," a government source told ANI.

The two militaries would now seek directions from their senior leadership on the talks and take a final decision soon. So far, it seems that the outcome may be positive, sources said.

There is also a possibility of holding senior-level talks between the two sides in the very near future, they said.

Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra told the media in Johannesburg that Prime Minister Modi in a conversation with President Xi Jinping of China, highlighted India's concerns on the unresolved issues along the LAC in the western sector of the India-China border areas.

"Prime Minister underlined that the maintenance of peace and tranquillity in the border areas and observing and respecting the LAC are essential for the normalisation of the India-China relationship," he said.

In this regard, the two leaders agreed to direct their "relevant officials to intensify efforts at expeditious disengagement and de-escalation," the foreign secretary said.

The Indian and Chinese military held Major General-level talks at two locations including Daulat Beg Oldie and Chushul sector and started parleys on August 19.

India and China held the 19th round of Corps Commander Level talks earlier this month at the Chushul-Moldo meeting point on the Indian side.

Ministry of External Affairs had said in a statement that the two sides had a positive, constructive and in-depth discussion on the resolution of the remaining issues along the LAC in the Western Sector.

"In line with the guidance provided by the leadership, they exchanged views in an open and forward-looking manner. They agreed to resolve the remaining issues in an expeditious manner and maintain the momentum of dialogue and negotiations through military and diplomatic channels. In the interim, the two sides agreed to maintain the peace and tranquility on the ground in the border areas," the statement said.

There has been disengagement from some friction points along LAC in eastern Ladakh following stand-off between India and China in April 2020 due to the actions of the Chinese army.