NEW DELHI: Ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s expected visit to India next month, New Delhi and Beijing have agreed on a fresh set of measures to strengthen communication along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), while keeping negotiations on the boundary question moving. The decisions were reached at the 25th round of talks between India and China’s Special Representatives, held in Beijing on August 25, with National Security Adviser Ajit Doval representing India and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi representing China.
The talks produced an eight-point outcome that combines political engagement on the boundary dispute with practical measures aimed at preventing incidents along the LAC from escalating. Among the most significant decisions was an agreement to establish two additional meeting points for General Level Mechanism/Senior Highest Military Commander meetings, an official release said.
The two sides also agreed to add two new channels for border military hotlines in the Eastern and Middle Sectors, expanding direct military communication between the two countries.
The agreement comes as India and China continue efforts to consolidate peace and stability along the border following years of heightened tensions. Both sides agreed that situations on the ground would be addressed promptly through existing diplomatic and military channels, including the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination, local commander-level meetings and other agreed mechanisms. The two sides also discussed ways to improve their understanding of the LAC in appropriate areas, with the aim of reducing the risk of misunderstanding and miscalculation, the release said.
On the broader boundary dispute, India and China reaffirmed their commitment to negotiations for a framework settlement based on the 2005 Agreement on Political Parameters and Guiding Principles for Settlement of the India-China Boundary Question, as well as understandings reached during subsequent Special Representatives’ talks.
The Expert Group on Boundary Delimitation and the Working Group on Border Management under the WMCC will now work towards an “early and substantial harvest” on boundary delimitation and border management, with their first task being to finalize their respective terms of reference.
The talks also brought cross-border cooperation back into focus.
India welcomed China’s efforts to increase the number of batches of Indian pilgrims undertaking the Kailash-Mansarovar Yatra in the Tibet Autonomous Region. Both sides noted the reopening of three designated border trading points and agreed to strengthen cooperation in border trade, pilgrimage and other areas. The emphasis on such exchanges marks an effort to create what the two sides described as an atmosphere of dialogue, peace, consultation and cooperation in the border areas.
The two countries are also set to resume technical discussions on trans-border rivers. The next meeting of the India-China Expert-Level Mechanism on Trans-border Rivers will be held in September, with hydrological data sharing and renewal of relevant memoranda of understanding among the issues expected to remain on the agenda.
