Ladakh Standoff: India, China To Hold Sixth Round Of Corps Commander

Delhi: India and China are set for the sixth round of Corps Commander talks today. The armies of both countries will discuss the disengagement of troops and de-escalation of the volatile situation in eastern Ladakh. The talks will begin at 9 AM at Moldo on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh.

A report by PTI says that the Indian delegation at the talks is set to be led by Lt Gen Harinder Singh, the commander of the Leh-based 14 Corps of the Indian Army, while the Chinese side is likely to be headed by Major General Liu Lin, the commander of the South Xinjiang military region. According to sources, this will be the first time a senior Ministry of External Affairs official -- Joint Secretary, East Asia, Navin Srivastava will be joining the Indian delegation.

"In the talks, India will insist on complete disengagement of Chinese troops from the friction points at the earliest," a government source said in a report by PTI.

On September 10, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi discussed the border row and agreed on resolving the issue on the sidelines of a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meet in Moscow.

An official statement after the meeting said, "The two foreign ministers agreed that the current situation in the border areas is not in the interest of either side. They agreed, therefore, that the border troops of both sides should continue their dialogue, quickly disengage, maintain proper distance and ease tensions."

Meanwhile, the latest reports quoting government sources have emerged informing that the Indian Army occupied six new major positions on Finger 4 ridgeline along the Line of Actual Control in the Eastern Ladakh sector. Information by news agency ANI says that the new hill features being occupied by Indian troops include the Magar Hill, Gurung Hill, Recehen La, Rezang La, Mokhpari, and the dominating height over Chinese positions near Finger 4.