NEW DELHI: The 11th round of the Working Mechanism on Consultation & Coordination (WMCC) for India-China Border Affairs was held here on Thursday. The Indian delegation was led by Shri Pranay Verma, Joint Secretary (East Asia), Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), while the Chinese delegation was led by Yi Xianliang, Director General, Department of Boundary & Oceanic Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China.
According to an MEA press release, “We underlined that maintenance of peace and tranquility in the India-China border areas is an important pre-requisite for further development of bilateral relations between the two countries.”
The meeting comes when New Delhi is concerned about China’s fresh inroads into Doklam in Bhutan, which had led to a 73-day face off between Indian and Chinese forces last year.
Confidence-building measures for enhancing mutual trust and understanding between border personnel were discussed. Both sides agreed to strengthen cooperation between the two defense forces through visits and institutionalised dialogue mechanisms.
WMCC was established in 2012 as an institutional mechanism for consultation and coordination for peace and tranquility on the India-China border areas, as well as to exchange views on strengthening communication and cooperation, including between their border security personnel.