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Jaishankar outlines India’s troop disengagement in Ladakh as the first step toward restoring 2020 patrolling status
Addressing a press conference in Mumbai, Jaishankar said consensus has been achieved on patrolling and disengagement in Depsang and Demchok. (Reuters file photo)
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Sunday said that the disengagement of troops at Depsang and Demchok in Ladakh is the first step toward resolving the India-China border standoff and returning to the 2020 patrolling status.
The next step is de-escalation, which will not happen until India is sure that the same is occurring on the other side as well, the minister said, during a press conference in Mumbai. This comes as India announced it had reached an agreement with China on patrolling along the LAC in eastern Ladakh, a breakthrough in ending the over four-year-long military standoff.
‘It is obvious it will take time’
Addressing a presser here, Jaishankar said consensus has been achieved on patrolling and disengagement in Depsang and Demchok. “It is obvious it will take time to implement the same. This is the issue of disengagement and patrolling which meant our armies had come very close to each other and now they have gone back to their bases. We hope the 2020 status is restored,” he said.
The completion of disengagement is the first step. The next step is de-escalation which will not happen until India is sure that the same is happening on the other side as well, the External Affairs Minister said. “After de-escalation, how to manage the borders will be discussed,” he added.
‘Look at the next step’
On Saturday, Jaishankar said the breakthrough agreement with China on patrolling along the LAC does not mean that issues between the two countries have been resolved. He credited the military, which worked in “very very unimaginable” conditions, and deft diplomacy for the breakthrough agreement with China.
“The latest step (of disengagement) was the October 21 understanding that patrolling will take place in Depsang and Demchok. This will allow us now to look at the next step. It is not like everything has been resolved but the disengagement which is the first phase we have managed to reach that level,” Jaishankar said at an event in Pune.
Responding to a question during a separate interaction with students, Jaishankar said it is still a bit early for the normalisation of relations, which will naturally take time to rebuild a degree of trust and willingness to work together. Since 2020, the situation on the border has been disturbed, which has understandably negatively impacted the overall relationship. From September 2020 onward, India has been negotiating with China to find a solution to the border standoff.
(With agency inputs)