Ladakh: India, China Has Started Withdrawing Their Troops, Says Rajnath Singh

India says it has reached an agreement with China to reduce tensions in the Ladakh region, under which the two sides have begun withdrawing their troops from some areas.

Elaborating on the agreement reached with China in Parliament on Thursday, February 11, Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said that the two countries had agreed to withdraw troops from the northern and southern shores of Lake Pangong in eastern Ladakh.

The Indian Defense Minister said, “I am pleased to inform the House that as a result of our firm intentions and long-term negotiations, an agreement has been reached with China on the withdrawal of troops from the north and west shores of Lake Pangong.”

He added that “in accordance with the agreement reached with China for the withdrawal of troops, both sides will withdraw their troops in a phased, coordinated and authoritative manner.”

Earlier, Indian media quoted China as saying that the two countries’ armies had begun withdrawing troops from the disputed areas of Lake Pangong. However, instead of commenting on the news, India had said that Defense Minister Rajnath Singh would brief Parliament on the development.

What is a contract?

According to the details of the agreement reached by the Indian Defense Minister in the House, the parties have so far agreed to withdraw troops only from the northern and southern shores of Lake Pangong, while no progress has been made so far on other disputed areas. And the situation there will remain the same. According to the statement, talks will continue to reduce tensions in other areas as well.

Rajnath Singh said that on the east bank of Lake Pangong on the north bank, “China will keep its army at Finger Eight, while India will deploy its military unit at Finger Three near its permanent post at Dhan Singh Thapa outpost.” ۔ Similar actions will be taken by the parties in the southern coastal region of the lake.

“Progress will be made under these measures by mutual consent and all the constructions done by the parties on the north and south coasts before April 2020 will be removed and the status quo restored. It has been agreed. ”

The Indian defence minister also said that the two sides had agreed to suspend all other military activities, including patrolling the northern shore of the lake, until a final agreement was reached. He said military patrols in the area would be resumed only when an agreement was reached in military-level talks.

The Indian defence minister also claimed that India had not compromised with China on an inch of its land. He said that India had never accepted Chinese claims in this regard.

It is noteworthy that till April last year, India used to patrol Lake Pangong up to finger eight and after the dispute, China had restricted it to finger four. However, under the new agreement, its army will keep Finger Three.

Indo-China border dispute

India and China share a border of about 3,000 km from northeastern Sikkim to eastern Ladakh. Line in most areas

Off-the-shelf control is established and there is a long-standing border dispute between the two. The dispute over the LAC has been a source of tension between the two in eastern Ladakh for the past eight months.

The dispute between India and China over the LAC in eastern Ladakh began in May last year and in mid-June, a clash between the two troops in the Galwan Valley killed 20 Indian soldiers and injured dozens.

Since the incident, there have been almost nine rounds of military and diplomatic talks between the two sides, which is the latest development.

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