Indian and Chinese external affairs ministers both agreed on a five-point plan to resolve the border tensions in Ladakh, where India and China have been witnessing a border face-off for quite some time.
To resolve the issue between the two countries, India’s external affairs minister, S Jaishankar, and Chinese external affairs minister, Wang Yi, held a two-and-a-half-hour long meeting in Moscow.
Border tensions along the LAC
The Indian Army and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army have been in a standoff along the LAC (Line of Actual Control) in Eastern Ladakh since earlier this year in May. The relations between the two nations kept worsening because of the border dispute in the Himalayan region.
The clash’s primary cause is both nations wanting to build infrastructure along the LAC. India’s construction of a road to a high altitude airbase triggered the clash with Chinese troops in June this year, which resulted in the killing of at least 20 Indian soldiers. The standoff continued at the border with India accusing China of provoking military tensions twice in the same week. At the same time, China denied the claims and stated that it was entirely India’s fault.
A month later, China accused India of firing at its soldiers while India accused them of firing first in the air.
The new five-point plan to ease tension
Economic Times reported that India and China have agreed on a five-point plan to resolve the two nations’ border standoff and tensions. The external affairs ministers of both the countries decided on this plan in a meeting held in Moscow.
Moreover, the two ministers issued a joint press statement and agreed that the current border situation is not of any nation’s interest. Therefore, the soldiers on both sides of the border should continue their dialogue, disengage, and maintain a proper distance.
The five-point plan includes abiding by the consensus between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping and not allowing the differences to turn into disputes.
It is assumed that the military commanders’ meeting in the next few days will chalk out disengagement steps more clearly, which the Foreign Ministers will review before deciding on the course ahead. Meanwhile, the joint statement also mentioned that both sides would abide by the protocol and maintain peace at the border and avoid any action that could worsen the already grim situation between the two countries.
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