October 13, 2023
BEIJING/NEW DELHI – The 20th China-India Corps Commander Level Meeting was held at a border meeting point on the Indian side from Oct 9-10, China and India said in separate announcements.
The two sides had a positive, in-depth and constructive discussion on resolving the remaining issues along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the western sector of the China-India border in a mutually acceptable manner at the earliest possible date, according to a statement issued by the Chinese Defense Ministry in the morning on Oct 12.
Both sides agreed to maintain the momentum of communication and dialogue through military and diplomatic channels, according to the statement issued by the Chinese Defense Ministry
Both sides agreed to maintain the momentum of communication and dialogue through military and diplomatic channels, according to the statement.
“The two sides exchanged views in a frank, open and constructive manner for an early and mutually acceptable resolution of the remaining issues along the LAC in the Western Sector, in accordance with the guidance provided by the national leadership of the two countries, and building on the progress made in the last round of Corps Commanders’ Meeting held on 13-14 August 2023,” India’s Ministry of External Affairs said in its own statement, which was issued late on Oct 11.
The two sides also committed to maintaining peace and tranquility on the ground in the border areas in the interim, it said. This was the second time when military commanders from the two nations held talks for two consecutive days.
READ MORE: Exchanges of China, India on border control regarded positive
Both sides are holding dialogues regularly to resolve all the outstanding issues, which is definitely a good sign to bring the bilateral relations back on track, experts said.
The 19th round of talks were held ahead of the G20 Summit hosted by New Delhi last month. After that round of military talks in August, a joint press release was issued by India and China and there was also a Major General level meeting held between both sides to chalk out finer details of the points discussed in the corps commander level talks.
It is very clear that both sides would like to move forward and resolve differences which have affected bilateral relations for decades, said R.S. Vasan, a retired Indian navy commodore who is now the director of the Chennai Centre for China Studies think tank. The talks are definitely a welcome sign for the cause of long-term stability, security and prosperity of the region, he said.
Regular dialogue is a good sign but since it has stopped making progress there is urgent need to take it to the political level to make any breakthrough possible, said Swaran Singh, a professor of diplomacy and disarmament at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi.
READ MORE: China-India talks aim for swift border resolution
The dialogue suggests that there could be more negotiations between the two countries at all levels. These negotiations may take a long time since both countries have their own standpoints and the border issue is very delicate, said Haans Freddy, a professor in the department of political science at Madras Christian College in Chennai.
Experts said both countries are invaluable to one another in terms of trade, people-to-people exchanges and cultural exchanges.
China hopes to accelerate the resumption of practical cooperation with India, and both sides have the ability to find a way for friendly coexistence and jointly create the ‘Asian century’, Charge d’Affaires at the Chinese embassy in India Ma Jia said recently during an event hosted by the embassy to mark the 74th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.