Chief of Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi.
Credit: PTI Photo
New Delhi: Border guarding troops of India and China had nearly 1100 interactions in the last one year – three talks daily on an average – to iron out ground level differences, Chief of the Army Staff Gen Upendra Dwivedi said here on Monday, noting that situations have been improving since Oct 2024.
The enhanced level of interactions, Gen Dwivedi said, helped troops on the ground to make headway in resolving local issues as the top leaders from both sides were continuing the dialogue for a resolution of the confrontation-like situation prevailing in areas close to the 3488 km long Line of Actual Control.
“There has been a lot of improvement in our relations since last October following dialogues between leaders of the two nations. If political directions are clear, it benefits everyone,” the Army Chief said at an event on the eve of Chanakya Defence Dialogue, an annual flagship event of the Indian Army.
While initially the talks were limited to the Corps Commander level, the interactions were extended to the levels of battalion and company commanders in order to address thorny issues on the ground.
In Oct 2024, India and China concluded an agreement on patrolling arrangements along the LAC areas in Depsang and Demchok in eastern Ladakh, leading to disengagement.
The two countries agreed that patrolling activities and, wherever applicable, grazing would resume as per longstanding practice before friction started in these areas. The agreement has since been effected and implemented.
Following the agreement, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping twice in the last one year. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also met their Chinese counterparts to continue with the dialogue.
On Pakistan, Gen Dwivedi said Op Sindoor was only a trailer that lasted for 88 hours and not a full movie. “If Pakistan gives us a second chance, we will teach them a lesson on how a responsible nation should behave with its neighbours,” he said.
“Even if we get a bearing post letter, we know whom to send the response to. India will continue to consider the terrorists and their supporters alike, and it will respond firmly to terrorism,” the Chief of the Army Staff said in a veiled reference to state-sponsored terrorism emanating from Pakistan without naming the country.