India, China Break Border Deadlock as They Begin Withdrawing Troops From Contested Ladakh

The last disengagement of troops on the loosely demarcated Line of Actual Control (LAC) took place a year ago. Delhi and Beijing have held more than half a dozen military and diplomatic talks following clashes on the border in 2020 that resulted in 20 Indian soldiers and four PLA troops being killed.

Indian and Chinese troops deployed at Gogra-Hotsprings (PP-15) in the eastern sector of the LAC have begun to disengage in a "coordinated and planned way," the armies announced in a joint statement on Thursday afternoon.

The disengagement, halted for more than a year, began per the "consensus reached in the 16th round of India China Corps Commander Level Meeting" held on July 17.

The development is conducive to peace and tranquility in the border areas, the Indian Army added.

The news comes days ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Samarkand, which will be attended by world leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and China's President Xi Jinping.

The border stand-off between India and China broke out in April 2020 over infrastructure development works in the Pangong Tso region, escalating into violent clashes on June 15-16, in which 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers were killed.

Each side deployed tanks, fighter jets, and 60,000 troops in the areas behind the LAC.

Even as the two countries withdrew troops and tanks from Lake Pangong in February 2021, the process to separate their forces from other "friction areas" such as the Depsang Plains, Gogra, and Hotspring were stalled over a range of issues.