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Since 2020, there has been a tug-of-war on the Indo-China border. The latest border dispute between the two countries started in Ladakh’s Doklam, Kalwan Valley and has now reached Arunachal Pradesh’s Tawang sector.
Relations between the two countries and border tensions are well known. Now, for the first time in three years, a senior official of the Indian External Affairs Ministry has visited Beijing to hold talks with China on the border issue.
Indian External Affairs Ministry’s Joint Secretary (East Asia) Shilpak Ambule arrived in Beijing to attend the ‘Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Issue’ i.e. WMCC meeting.
This is the first time since July 2019 that the representatives of the two countries will meet face-to-face at the WMCC meeting. Since the May 2020 incident in Ladakh, 11 WMCC meetings have been held between the two countries. But these were done through video conferencing. India did not have much success in these meetings.
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This time India’s senior officer Shilpak Ambule has gone to Beijing. He is the Joint Secretary for the East Asia Region in the Ministry of External Affairs and oversees China, Japan and Korea’s relations with India.
Ambule met China’s Assistant Foreign Minister Hua Chunying on Wednesday. A brief Chinese Foreign Ministry statement said they discussed bilateral relations and the situation on the border.
Ambule, who is fluent in Chinese Mandarin, has also served as an official interpreter during meetings of Chinese leaders with former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
It is clear from the name of this meeting that border tension is the main agenda of this meeting.
India and China have deployed 50,000 troops on their sides in the Ladakh sector. Tensions have further escalated following a clash between troops on the Yangtze near Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh last December, in which several soldiers from both sides were injured.
Defense Minister Rajnath Singh explained the incident in both Houses of Parliament and said that India is ready to retaliate against any action on the border.
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Moti Xi Jinping
“Both sides reviewed the situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) on the western side of the India-China border. “Discussed constructively the means of withdrawal from other border areas,” said an official statement issued by the State Department on the meeting.
“This will help restore peace along the Line of Actual Control in the West. Also, it will create conditions for the restoration of normalcy in bilateral relations.”
“Both countries have agreed to hold the next (18th) round of senior commanders meeting in accordance with existing bilateral agreements and protocols to achieve this objective.”
The last meeting of the WMCC was held in October last year, a month after the withdrawal of troops from Kogra-Hot Springs in Ladakh.
In September last year, a rear movement of Indian and Chinese forces took place at Patrollink Pillar 15 in Khogra-Hotspring. After that the back movement was done in other patrolling pillars in the area. However, the Indian Express reports that the Chinese Army is still blocking access to the Indian Army’s traditional patrol areas along the Line of Actual Control in the Debchang and Charing Nala areas.
“While China has built infrastructure on a massive scale, we are working on building infrastructure on the border. We should have done this 25 years ago,” External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said in an interview with a news agency this week.
“China is a big economy. India responded to the situation created by China by breaking the Line of Actual Control agreement. China’s economy is big, India’s economy is small. Should we fight a big economy?”
What will be the outcome of this meeting?
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How much will India benefit from this face-to-face meeting after three years and what is its significance?
“The WMCC is a long process. The process will not lead to immediate results. But a ‘profound’ result will certainly emerge,” says Dr Faisal Ahmed, a China affairs expert in Delhi.
“There have been 11 WMCC meetings since 2020. But instead of virtual meetings, communication will be better if we sit face-to-face and also create a better atmosphere for future meetings,” he said.
“India’s approach to China should not be top-down, but bottom-up. It is important that the embassies of both countries meet face-to-face for the first time. However, 20-30 such meetings are definitely needed if a lasting positive result is to be reached,” said Faisal Ahmed.
In 2020, China virtually abrogated border agreements signed with India in 2005, 2012 and 2013. A bloody conflict broke out at Kalwan between the two nations. 20 Indian soldiers and at least four Chinese soldiers were killed.
‘Need new deals’
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It was a three-pronged affair when the conflict broke out in Doklam. That means it is the area where the borders of three countries meet. The borders of three countries India-China-Bhutan meet in this area.
In this dispute, China and India are claiming claims citing an 1890 treaty signed during the British rule. They offer different interpretations based on this agreement.
“Many treaties have been signed between the two countries. Some of them date back to the period of British Indian administration. China interprets these treaties differently, claiming territorial rights. India’s interpretation is different,” says Dr. Faisal.
“There is a need for new negotiations between the two countries. New agreements must be made with mutual consent. This will take time.”
But, from the world stage to the domestic meetings, the Indian foreign minister can be seen repeating that ‘China has violated international border rules’. Will such talks have any effect on this meeting?
Dr. Ahmed says that the foreign minister’s statements will not play a big role in the negotiations at the diplomatic level.
“Statements are made keeping in mind the current geopolitics. They create a common sense among people. But when there are such mechanisms with a clear focus, agenda, the talks are only about what the meeting is for,” he noted.
“India should insist on bilateral dialogue. This will yield the best results. US’s divisive policy towards Russia and China has not yielded much results. So in such a situation, a negotiated solution through a face-to-face meeting will prove to be India’s best approach to China,” he said.
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