Indian and Chinese armies to resume talks to de-escalate tensions along

New Delhi: A new round of talks between the armies of India and China to de-escalate tensions along the LAC in Ladakh will be held soon. Earlier, the 15th round of talks between the two countries’ military officials was held on March 11, but nothing came of it. A few days ago, the Indian Army chief had alleged that China was not interested in resolving the border dispute with India but wanted to keep the border dispute burning.

According to the Indian Foreign Ministry, the two countries have agreed to hold a new round of talks to reduce tensions over the LAC in East Ladakh. Currently, 50,000 to 60,000 troops from both countries are stationed at the LAC in Ladakh. China had tried to exert military pressure on India by deploying thousands of troops along the LAC in Ladakh. After the conflict in the Galwan Valley in 2020, China began to feel that it was necessary to dominate the Indian Army as its reputation was at stake. For that, China had increased its deployment. However, the Indian Army reversed this move on China by matching their deployment.

The Indian Army had thwarted China’s ploy to increase the pressure in the future. Against this backdrop, military officials of the two countries have held 15 rounds of talks so far. However, tensions in some parts of eastern Ladakh have not decreased and China seems to be consciously maintaining tensions. On May 9, India’s Army Chief General Manoj Pande directly accused China in this regard. General Pande had said that China was not interested in resolving the border dispute with India but wanted to keep it burning.

In view of these statements of the Army Chief, India seems to be very cautious in its discussions on the border dispute with China. Speaking at an event, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh warned about China precisely. India does not see China as an enemy. However, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has warned that if China tries to undermine Indian self-respect or moves to grab Indian land, India will retaliate with all its might.

China is India’s number one partner says China’s Foreign Ministry

It was recently reported that the US had overtaken China to become India’s number one trade partner. This has not gone down well with China. China claims that it is India’s leading trading partner and not the United States. At present, the United States seems to be leading the way in trade with India because of different statistical measurement scales, claims Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian.

India’s fiscal year is from April to March. Whereas China takes into account its fiscal year from January to December. China is still India’s number one trading partner on this count, Lijian claimed. India’s trade with China has gone up to $125.66 billion. While bilateral trade between India and the US stands at $119 billion, Lijian added.

However, India has to bear a trade deficit of about $72.91 billion in this bilateral trade. India has to suffer the trade deficit as China does not provide opportunities to Indian companies in the pharmaceutical and IT sectors. Lijian did not respond to a request for comment regarding this. But there are clear indications that India will continue to pursue a tougher policy on trade with China.