Army chief says India will ‘victorious’ while protecting its borders

General Naravane also said that war or conflict is always “a means of last resort”, but if it is imposed on India, the country will be victorious, as he said the overall situation in eastern Ladakh is “stable and under control”. Is. ,

His remarks at a press conference ahead of Army Day on January 15 came on a day when India and China held the 14th round of Corps Commander-level talks to resolve the military standoff in eastern Ladakh.

The army chief stressed that China’s new land border law is not binding on India and the Indian military is adequately prepared to deal with any military implications of the law.

Gen Naravane said his forces are maintaining the highest level of operational preparedness in eastern Ladakh and the threat assessment and internal deliberations have resulted in re-organization and re-alignment of troops.

Describing the situation in eastern Ladakh as “stable and under control”, the army chief referred to resolution of issues through talks at some friction points and said he is confident of finding solutions to the remaining ones.

He said, “The situation is stable and under control. As I mentioned that talks are on and when talks are on, there is always hope that through talks we will be able to resolve our differences.”

“What happens and whether or not a situation will escalate is very difficult to predict or predict. But whatever we have done so far, we are in a position to face whatever is thrown at us in the future. I can assure you with great confidence,” said General Naravane.

He said, “War is always there or conflict is always a means of last resort. But if we resort to it, we will be victorious.”

The army chief said India’s response to Chinese attempts to unilaterally change the status quo was “very strong” and that it was able to thwart these designs.

“If you recall the situation last January, I think we can say that in the last one year there has been a positive development on our northern and western borders,” he said.

General Naravane said the Army continues to maintain the highest level of operational preparedness along our northern borders while engaging in constant dialogue with the Chinese PLA.

He said that after continuous joint efforts, there has been interaction and positive movement at many places.

“The 14th round of Corps Commander level talks is underway, and I hope you will see more development in the days to come. But despite the partial disengagement, the threat has not subsided in any way. Force level, The areas where disruption is yet to be done have been substantially scaled up,” he said.

The army chief said the threat assessment and internal deliberations have resulted in reorganization and realignment of forces and to complete the major augmentation of PLA forces and military infrastructure.

“We will continue to deal with the PLA in a firm, resolute and peaceful manner while ensuring the integrity of our claims. Necessary security measures have been taken,” he said.

His remarks came on a day when Indian and Chinese armies held the 14th round of high-level talks on the eastern Ladakh row.

Asked about his expectations from the talks, General Naravane suggested that an attempt would be made to carry out the decommissioning at Patrolling Point-15 (Hot Springs).

“We hope that we will be able to resolve the issues on PP 15. Once that is done, we will move on to other issues that predate the current impasse. We hope that that too is resolved in a timely manner. Will go,” he said in a clear reference to the outstanding issues in Demchok and Depsang.

In this context, General Naravane said that the fourth and fifth rounds of talks resulted in the resolution of the issue at Patrolling Point-14, while the ninth and 10th rounds addressed issues in the north and south banks of Pangong Tso as well as the Kailash ranges. helped to solve.

“Then after a few rounds, we were able to resolve this issue in PP 17 (Gogra) also. We have to keep talking to each other. Every time we talk, the differences get less and then we reach a consensus,” he said.

He added: “It is also quite unreasonable to expect that every round will have a result.”

Asked whether the troop level and infrastructure would remain in place along the Line of Actual Control, Gen Naravane said the tension may ease after the disengagement.

The Army Chief said that once the friction zones are sorted out, both sides can look to go back to the deeper areas from detonating the LAC.

“Once this kind of confidence is instilled, we can think of de-induction, in which soldiers can go back to their permanent garrisons and places,” he said.

“But whatever we decide to do, it will be based on the principle of mutual and equal security and that will always be our bottom line. Until we reach those stages, we have to be prepared to be there . is required,” he said.

The Chief of the Army Staff said that as far as the Northern Front is concerned, the capabilities of the Armed Forces have increased manifold in the last one and a half years.

“We have inducted additional troops, we have created various infrastructure and facilities for the 25,000 additional soldiers who went to that area,” he said.

“For what we have done, we are in a much better position than we were a year and a half ago. Also, we are better prepared to face any challenge that comes before us,” he said.

On China’s land boundary law, he said that any law which is not in line with the agreements that the two countries had entered into in the past cannot be binding on India.

“As far as the military impact is concerned, we are still looking at that aspect. Should there be any military impact and there should be any possible decline in the military sector, we are adequately prepared to deal with any such repercussions. Huh.” They said.

This story has been published without modification in text from a wire agency feed. Only the title has been changed.