Shubhajit Roy
The Indian Express
July 25, 2013
India raised the issue of recent incursions with China — from the Depsang valley incident in April to the latest one where the Chinese troops crossed over and took away cameras in Chumar — during the two-day official talks held in New Delhi, sources said on Wednesday.
New Delhi is also learnt to have raised the issue of lack of coordination, especially during the Depsang valley incident, when the Chinese Foreign Ministry was not speaking in the same voice as the Chinese troops on ground-level. Upset by the incident, the Ministry of External Affairs had summoned the Chinese envoy in Delhi.
The two sides discussed ways for better coordination with the possibility of more confidence-building measures (CBMs). They also deliberated ways to maintain peace and tranquility along the Line of Actual Control. At the conclusion of the third round of meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs, Ministry of External spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said, “The talks were held in a constructive and forward-looking atmosphere.”
“The delegations reviewed recent developments in the India-China border areas with the objective of enhancing peace and tranquility between the two countries,” he said.
The two sides “discussed additional confidence building measures between the two sides. They also consulted on measures to improve the functioning of the working mechanism and make it more efficient,” he added.
This was the first meeting on border mechanism since the three-week standoff in April at Depsang Valley in Ladakh.
The Indian delegation was led by Joint Secretary (East Asia) Gautam Bambawale and comprised representatives of the ministries of External Affairs, Defence and Home Affairs as well as members of the Army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police.
The Chinese delegation was led by Director General, Department of Boundary and Oceanic Affairs, Ouyang Yujing and included representatives of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and National Defence of the People’s Republic of China.
The two sides also discussed possibility of additional route to Kailash Mansarover, a pilgrimage place which falls in Chinese territory.
