SOURCE: Times Now
India and China will dismantle new structures that have been constructed during the ongoing standoff along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). Citing sources, news agency ANI reported that no patrolling will take place along Finger 4 and Finger 8.
As reported earlier by Times Now, the two sides have agreed to disengage from eastern Ladakh and the process is expected to be complete by April-May 2021. The two armies will thus be moving back to their pre-standoff positions during the next few months, the ANI report cited.
The disengagement plan was discussed during the recent corps-commander-level meeting held between the two armies on November 6.
On November 6, the two sides agreed to implement three-step disengagement
According to the agency report, the three-step disengagement plan will also involve retracting armoured vehicles including tanks and armoured personnel carriers from their current deployment to areas farther from the LAC.
According to the report, the disengagement of tanks and APCs was to be carried out within a day. In the second step, the two sides were to withdraw 30 per cent troops every day for three days. While the India side had agreed to retract to Dhan Singh Thapa post, PLA troops had agreed to go back to Finger 8. The third stage involved a complete withdrawal from the frontline.
What has hampered the disengagement process is the trust deficit between the two armies due to the incidents like Galwan which resulted in casualties on both sides.
Meanwhile, the MEA, on Thursday said that India and China have agreed to hold another round of talks. “The talks were candid, in-depth and constructive and both sides exchanged views on disengagement at all friction points along the Line of Actual Control in the Western Sector of India-China border areas. India and China have agreed to maintain dialogue and communication through military and diplomatic channels, and, taking forward the discussions at this meeting of the Senior Commanders, push for the settlement of other outstanding issues. They have also agreed to have another round of meeting soon,” MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said.
