India and China have agreed on a new patrolling arrangement along their disputed Himalayan border, potentially leading to disengagement and resolving tensions that have persisted since 2020, according to Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri. The breakthrough comes ahead of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Russia for the BRICS summit, where he may meet Chinese President Xi Jinping for further discussions.
Relations between the two nuclear-armed neighbors have been tense since a violent clash along the undemarcated border in 2020 resulted in the deaths of 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers. Misri explained that both diplomatic and military negotiators from India and China had engaged in multiple rounds of talks in recent weeks, culminating in the new patrolling agreement along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
The agreement aims to facilitate disengagement and address the issues that have been ongoing since 2020, when the border standoff began. While significant progress has been made, the foreign secretary indicated that some challenges remain, especially in restoring the situation along the frontier to its pre-2020 status. Misri’s comments come after India’s army chief, General Upendra Dwivedi, emphasized that the situation will remain delicate until the border conditions are fully restored.
Over the past four years, the slow progress in resolving the standoff has strained economic ties between the two countries, with India imposing tighter controls on Chinese investments and halting several major projects. However, recent diplomatic efforts have shown positive signs, according to General Dwivedi, though much depends on how military commanders on both sides implement the agreement on the ground.
As of Monday, there has been no immediate response from Beijing to Misri’s remarks, but the agreement represents a potential step towards reducing tensions and restoring stability along the contested border.
