India and China hold fresh round of border talks after ‘smooth completion’ of pullback from Pangong Tso
- A joint statement said commanders from both sides had held their tenth round of negotiations along their disputed frontier on Saturday
- This month’s withdrawal agreement follows months of tension that peaked in June with a deadly clash in the Galwan Valley
A joint press release said the two sides had “positively appraised the smooth completion” of the withdrawal from Pangong Tso on Saturday, describing it as a “significant step forward that provided a good basis for the resolution of other remaining issues”.
“The two sides agreed to follow the important consensus of their state leaders, continue their communication and dialogue, stabilise and control the situation on the ground, push for a mutually acceptable resolution of the remaining issues in a steady and orderly manner, so as to jointly maintain peace and tranquillity in the border areas,” the statement said.
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China shares video of deadly 2020 border clash with Indian troops in Galwan Valley
Last year saw the two sides steadily building up their forces along the western part of their disputed border, the Line of Actual Control, between Indian-controlled Ladakh and Chinese-held Aksai Chin.
The Chinese defence ministry said the latest talks involved front-line commanders and had been held on the Chinese side of the line at the Moldo/Chusul meeting point.
Satellite images from Maxar Technologies also showed that China had emptied some of the camps it has built and dismantled dozens of structures.
Tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours peaked in June with the bloodiest clash between the two sides in decades.
