Indian and Chinese commanders sat across the table Saturday to discuss pullback of troops from the friction points at Hot Springs, Gogra Post and Depsang Plains in Ladakh following completion of disengagement and restoration of status quo ante on the north and south banks of Pangong Tso.
The Corps Commander-level talks began at 10 am Saturday at the Moldo border point facing Chushul. The talks, sources said, are expected to continue late into the night.
The Indian delegation is being led by Lt General PGK Menon, Commander of the Leh-based XIV Corps, while South Xinjiang Military District Commander, Major General Liu Lin, is heading the PLA team.
In Hot Springs and Gogra Post areas, Chinese and Indian troops are still in a faceoff, nine months after the military standoff began in May 2020. Disengagement of troops in these two areas was attempted last July but Chinese reluctance to complete the process led to a stalemate.
In the Depsang Plains in the far north, Chinese troops have been blocking Indian soldiers at a place called the Bottleneck, preventing them from accessing their traditional patrolling points PP10, PP11, PP11A, PP12 and PP13. Depsang Plains is close to the strategic Indian base at Daulat Beg Oldie, near the Karakoram Pass.
At the talks, the Indian side is also learnt to have broached the subject of grazing rights of residents of the Demchok area.
Sources said broad contours for the…
