India and China held the 13th round of the India-China Corps Commander-level meeting earlier this month.
Guwahati:
Noting that pending issues with China related to the LAC in eastern Ladakh are being resolved through dialogue, Chief of Defense Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat on Saturday said that there are doubts and issues between the two countries. It takes time to solve.
Responding to a question during an event in Guwahati, CDS Rawat said that the border issue with China should be looked at holistically. “Don’t look at North East or Ladakh separately.”
“In 2020, we had a little problem. And the issues are now being resolved through dialogue at the military level, foreign affairs level and political level,” he said.
“The issues that happened – we should let it rest and we are very confident that we will be able to resolve our border issues. This is not the first time. These border issues have happened in the past and we have to resolve them. Since there is doubt between the two countries, it takes time to resolve them (issues).”
“The same thing happened in Sumdorong Chu, it took a very long time to resolve. In fact, this time it is being resolved much faster than it was in the 1980s. You need to have faith in your system and especially in your armed forces. Must have faith. Forces them not to let you do that,” he said.
Three major friction points had emerged between the two countries, including both sides of the Pangong Lake, Gogra Heights and Hot Springs area, following the Chinese build-up along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh.
Through several rounds of talks, both sides have resolved issues related to Pangong Tso and Gogra Heights friction points as troops withdrew.
India and China held the 13th round of the India-China Corps Commander-level meeting earlier this month.
India said that it expects the Chinese side to work towards an early resolution of all remaining issues along the LAC in eastern Ladakh.
“We had put forward constructive suggestions to resolve the remaining areas during the 13th round of the India-China Corps Commander-Level Meeting, but the Chinese side did not agree. I do not want to characterize it in any particular way, except that The two foreign ministry spokespersons, Arindam Bagchi, had said that the sides have agreed to maintain communication and maintain stability on the ground.
Mr Bagchi had said that the resolution of the remaining areas and the restoration of peace and tranquility would facilitate progress in the overall bilateral relationship.
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