China completes process of military withdrawal from East Ladakh -

New Delhi: The withdrawal process initiated by the Chinese Army from the Gogra Range and Hot Spring on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh was completed on Tuesday. It is also said that the armies of India and China have verified each other’s retreat. India had repeatedly warned that if relations with India were to be normalized, the Chinese Army would have to withdraw from here. After two years of tension, China withdrew its Army from the region as per India’s demand. Therefore, as per analysts, this is a huge success for India’s assertive stance.

16 rounds of talks were held between the armies of the two countries to de-defuse the tension on the Ladakh LAC. During the 16th round of discussions, the armies of both countries had agreed on the withdrawal from East Ladakh. This matter was not disclosed at that time. Therefore, there were reports that this round of talks also had failed. But it was revealed over time that China expressed its willingness to withdraw its Army during this discussion. The SCO meeting, held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, is claimed to be the main reason behind Chinese withdrawal. The Prime Minister of India and the President of China will be present at this meeting and the media say that China has agreed so that the tension on the LAC should not hinder the bilateral talks.

Moreover, China’s relations with the United States and other Western countries have been strained over the Taiwan issue. In such a situation, China cannot afford to maintain tension with a neighbouring country like India. China had made moves even earlier to improve relations with India keeping the Army deployed on the LAC. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi also visited India for this purpose. But India had taken an adamant stand that cooperation with China was impossible unless there was harmony on the border. Also, the Indian Foreign Minister had effectively raised the issue at the international level that China is trying to intrude into the Indian border and the relations between the two countries have festered. This highlighted to the world that China is an expansionist country. China also came under pressure.

This is the backdrop to China’s retreat. At the same time, winter is approaching and it becomes complicated for the Chinese army personnel to survive the winter on the LAC in Ladakh. During the last two years, the Chinese Army had a terrible experience with this. Hundreds of Chinese soldiers fell ill due to severe winter. Considering this, China seems to have taken a wise decision to withdraw from here. This has created an image for India at the international level as a country capable of forcing China to retreat. India can derive a huge benefit from this.