Respect for LAC essential for restoring normalcy in ties, India tells China at talks in Delhi

The Indian government underlined that “respect for the Line of Actual Control (LAC)” is an essential basis for restoring normal relations during diplomatic talks with a delegation of the Chinese foreign ministry in Delhi Wednesday.

This comes amid a four-year long border standoff between the two sides.

During the talks, the head of the Chinese delegation also met Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, who served as the ambassador of India to China from January 2019 to December 2021, with the 2020 Galwan Valley crisis unfolding during his tenure.

“The two sides reviewed the current situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with a view to finding an early resolution of the outstanding issues. Restoration of peace and tranquility, and respect for the LAC are an essential basis for restoration of normalcy in bilateral relations (sic),” read a statement from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Wednesday.

Discussions were “in-depth”, “constructive” and “forward-looking”, the statement added.

This comes after External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, held two meetings recently — in Kazakhstan, on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Heads of State summit on 4 July, and in Laos, on the sidelines of an ASEAN meeting on 25 July.

Wednesday’s meeting marked the 30th round of the Working Mechanism for Consultation & Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC).

Gourangalal Das, Joint Secretary (East Asia) from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), led the Indian side at the meeting.

Hong Liang, Director General of the Boundary & Oceanic Department of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, led the Chinese delegation.

The statement from the Indian side said the two countries agreed to “jointly uphold peace” on the ground in the border areas, according to “relevant bilateral agreements, protocols and understandings”.

The statement also called for an “early resolution” to outstanding issues and described discussions as “forward-looking”.

At the 28th round of diplomatic talks held last November, the Indian side highlighted the need to “avoid any untoward incident” at the border.

On 15 June 2020, Indian and Chinese soldiers clashed in Ladakh’s Galwan Valley. Four years have seen several diplomatic and military-level talks calling for disengagement at the border. The two sides have held 20 rounds of commander-level talks.