Kehinde Fajobi
India and China have reached an agreement on patrolling arrangements aimed at de-escalating tensions along their disputed Himalayan border, according to India’s top diplomat, Vikram Misri.
Speaking on Monday, Misri stated that the two countries had decided on “disengagement and resolution of issues in these [border] areas that had arisen in 2020,” referring specifically to the violent clashes in Galwan Valley that resulted in casualties for both sides—the first fatalities in such confrontations since 1975.
“An agreement has been arrived at on patrolling arrangements along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the India-China border areas, leading to disengagement and a resolution of the issues that had arisen in these areas in 2020,” Misri said.
However, he did not provide specific details about the disengagement process or whether it would address all points of conflict along the disputed border.
This announcement comes just ahead of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s trip to Russia for a meeting of the Brics nations, which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.
Misri did not confirm if a bilateral meeting between Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping would be scheduled.
The Galwan Valley clashes, which occurred in June 2020, were marked by troops engaging in hand-to-hand combat using clubs and sticks, adhering to a 1996 agreement that prohibits firearms near the border. Since then, several rounds of talks between diplomatic and military leaders have failed to yield significant progress, with subsequent clashes reported in northern Sikkim in 2021 and the Tawang sector in 2022.
Tensions along the ill-defined 3,440km (2,100-mile) border have long affected India-China relations, which were historically marred by the 1962 war that resulted in a significant defeat for India.
The ongoing border disputes and competition to build infrastructure along the frontier continue to exacerbate tensions, negatively impacting business relations between the two nations.