India, China fail to resolve remaining issues in eastern Ladakh at 15th round of military talks

India and China could not make any significant headway in resolving the outstanding issues on the remaining friction points in eastern Ladakh at the 15th round of military talks but agreed to maintain the dialogue to reach a mutually acceptable resolution at the earliestA day after the nearly 13hour meeting the two sides in a joint statement on Saturday reaffirmed that such a resolution would help restore peace and tranquillity along the Line of Actual Control LAC in eastern Ladakh and facilitate progress in bilateral relationsThe 15th round of CorpsCommander level talks took place at the ChushulMoldo border point on the Indian side of the LAC in eastern Ladakh on FridaySources in the defence and security establishment said the talks failed to yield any significant outcomeThey reaffirmed that such a resolution would help restore peace and tranquillity along the LAC in the Western Sector and facilitate progress in bilateral relations the joint statement released simultaneously in Delhi and Beijing said The government refers to eastern Ladakh as Western SectorThe two sides also agreed to maintain the security and stability on the ground in the Western Sector in the interim They agreed to maintain dialogue via military and diplomatic channels to reach a mutually acceptable resolution of the remaining issues at the earliest it saidThe previous round of talks had taken place on January 12 and it too had failed to make any progress in resolving the outstanding issuesThe two sides carried forward their discussions from the previous round held on January 12 for the resolution of the relevant issues along the LAC in the Western Sector the joint statement saidThey had a detailed exchange of views in this regard in keeping with the guidance provided by the State Leaders to work for the resolution of the remaining issues at the earliest it saidThe sources said India strongly pressed for early disengagement of troops in remaining friction points including resolution of pending issues in Depsang Bulge and DemchokThe main focus of the talks was the completion of the stalled disengagement process in the Hot Springs Patrolling Point15 areas they saidThe affirmation in the statement that resolution of the outstanding issues would facilitate progress in bilateral relations appeared to be a reflection of Indias consistent position on overall ties between the two sidesIndia has been maintaining that peace and tranquillity along the LAC was key for the overall development of the bilateral tiesThis position was again emphasised by Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla on WednesdayWe have made it clear to China that peace and tranquillity in the border areas is essential for the development of our relationship Development of IndiaChina relationship has to be based on three mutuals mutual respect mutual sensitivity and mutual interest Shringla saidThe Indian delegation at the talks on Friday was led by Lt Gen Anindya Sengupta the Commander of the Lehbased 14 Corps The 14th round of talks too had failed to make any headway in resolving the row in remaining friction points in eastern LadakhThe two sides agreed to stay in close contact and maintain dialogue via military and diplomatic channels and work out a mutually acceptable resolution of the remaining issues at the earliest a joint statement issued after the 14th round of talks had saidThe eastern Ladakh border standoff between the Indian and Chinese militaries erupted on May 5 2020 following a violent clash in the Pangong lake areasBoth sides gradually enhanced their deployment by rushing in tens of thousands of soldiers as well as heavy weaponryAs a result of a series of military and diplomatic talks the two sides completed the disengagement process last year in the north and south banks of the Pangong lake and in the Gogra areaEach side currently has around 50000 to 60000 troops along the LACThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever