In a major development, India and China are set to hold 13th round military talks to discuss ongoing stand-off along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Eastern Ladakh. The Corps-Commander level talks will be taking place in Moldo-Chusul Personnel meeting point. The current round of talk is aimed to seek resolution bid the friction point at Hot Springs. The Indian side of the talks will be headed by Lt. General PGK Menon, commander of XIV Corps based in Leh. The other side will be led by Major General Liu Liu, commander of the South Xinjiang Military district.
Highlighting the motto of the 13th round talks, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi on Thursday had stated that India expects China to “work towards early resolution of the remaining issue along the Line of Control (LoC) in Eastern Ladakh by fully abiding by bilateral protocols.” It is to be noted that earlier on July 31st, both countries engaged in bilateral discussions during the 12th round of the India-China Corps-Commander level meet, which resulted in the disengagement of troops in the Gogra region.
Meanwhile, External Affairs Minister (EAM) Dr. S Jaishankar during his visit to Tajikistan for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) met his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi to lay the groundwork for the 13th round of talks. The Chinese have been preventing Indian troops from patrolling traditional points on the Depsang Plains near the Karakoram Pass. Earlier in August, tussles erupted when nearly 100 PLA soldiers infringed into Indian Territory in Barahoti in Uttarakhand.