Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: After last week’s agreement for disengagement between India and China, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday said that agreed patrolling by the two countries’ armies has started in Depsang on Friday and will soon commence in Demchok as well in the East Ladakh sector of the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
“India wants to keep a cordial relationship with all its neighboring countries. For more than a year, discussions have been happening between India and China, both on the army level and diplomatic level. We have reached an agreement…patrolling of both India and China has started in Depsang, the way it should happen, the same way, in Demchok also, patrolling will start,” he told reporters.
Earlier, Chinese Ambassador to India Xu Feihong said that it was natural for India and China to have differences as neighbouring countries but the important thing is how to handle and sort out these differences.
The coordinated patrolling would mean that both sides will know about the schedules of patrols by each other.
This development comes after India and China agreed to disengage and start coordinated patrols as per their perception of the LAC in the Demchok and Depsang sectors.
Earlier on Thursday, armies of both countries exchanged sweets at various border points in the Ladakh sector on the occasion of Diwali.
The border standoff between India and China began in Eastern Ladakh along the LAC in 2020, triggered by Chinese military actions. This incident led to prolonged tensions between the two nations, significantly straining their relations.