India on Tuesday said it has never accepted the so-called unilaterally defined 1959 Line of Actual Control, and that the county’s position has been consistent and well known to all including China. Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said at a news briefing here today rebutted reports quoting a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement regarding China’s position on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the India-China border areas. “India has never accepted the so-called unilaterally defined 1959 Line of Actual Control (LAC). This position has been consistent and well known, including to the Chinese side,” the MEA spokesperson said.
Srivastava pointed out that under their various bilateral agreements including the 1993 Agreement on Maintenance of Peace and Tranquility along the LAC, 1996 Agreement on Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) in the military field, 2005 Protocol on Implementation of CBMs, 2005 Agreement on Political Parameters and Guiding Principles for settlement of the India-China Boundary Question, “both India and China have committed to clarification and confirmation of the LAC to reach a common understanding of the alignment of the LAC.”
“In fact, the two sides had engaged in an exercise to clarify and confirm the LAC up to 2003, but this process could not proceed further as the Chinese side did not show a willingness to pursue it,” the spokesperson added. He said that India has always respected and abided by the LAC. The official said that the Chinese side “has repeatedly affirmed that the current situation in the border areas should be resolved in accordance with the agreements signed between the two countries”.
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“In the agreement reached between External Affairs Minister and his Chinese counterpart on 10th September also, the Chinese side has reiterated its commitment to abide by all the existing agreements,” the official said.
“We, therefore, expect that the Chinese side will sincerely and faithfully abide by all agreements and understandings in their entirety and refrain from advancing an untenable unilateral interpretation of the LAC.”
India and China, which held the sixth round of Senior Commanders’ meeting on Monday following border tensions in eastern Ladakh, have agreed to avoid misunderstandings and misjudgments, stop sending more troops to the frontline, refrain from unilaterally changing the situation on the ground and avoid taking any actions that may complicate the situation. The two sides also agreed to strengthen communication on the ground and to hold the next round of Military Commander-Level Meeting as soon as possible.
A joint press statement on Tuesday said that the two sides had a candid and in-depth exchange of views on “stabilizing the situation along the LAC in the India – China border areas”. It said that the two sides agreed to take practical measures to properly solve problems on the ground. (ANI)
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