Risky trusting China

It is a very positive development that India and China have arrived at a "mutual consensus" to disengage from all "friction areas" along the contested Line of Actual Control (LAC) and thus ease the tension on the border between the two countries. The "mutual consensus" was arrived at after an eleven-hour marathon discussion between the two sides at the Corps Commander-level on Monday at the Chushul-Moldo border personnel meeting (BMP) point in eastern Ladakh. The consensus came amid signs that New Delhi has remained firm in its demand that Chinese forces back off from an intrusion that is potentially far more serious than the Galwan Valley encroachments that led to violent clashes on 15 June. These encroachments are along Pangong Tso. While troops deployed at the border in the Galwan Valley had clashed, leading to the death of 20 Indian soldiers and reportedly a few more on the other side on June 15 night, Monday's Corps Commander-level meeting came close on the heels of the Major General-level dialogue took place for three consecutive days after the barbaric attack. The actual process of disengagement however is likely to be an "arduous and challenging" task, and with experts saying it will require moving ahead cautiously, and in phases. Experts have also said that while disengaging in some friction areas was a kind of a "low-hanging fruit" and could be achieved in a reasonable time-frame, the "real test" would however lie in the restoration of status quo ante in the Finger Area where the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) has reportedly set up a series of permanent bunkers, pill-boxes and observation posts despite strong objections by India. One military expert meanwhile has opined that the disengagement will have to be "equal, mutual and proportional," and is likely to be a long-drawn process in view of the massive mistrust that China has created by engaging in a brutal attack on Indian soldiers the Galwan Valley. It will also call for a lot of verification through different means at the various stages of disengagement in order to make sure that the Chinese troops have actually retreated. At this stage, it is important to examine how Beijing and New Delhi have responded to the "mutual consensus" reached on Monday. The Indian army has in a statement said that the "commander-level talks … were held at Moldo in (a) cordial, positive and constructive atmosphere. There was mutual consensus to disengage." Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian on the other hand said that "the two sides had a frank and in-depth exchange of views on the prominent issues in the current border control and agreed to take necessary measures to cool down the situation."