10th India-China military commander level talks underway

New Delhi, Feb 19: India and China are holding the 10th round of Corps Commander level talks on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control in Moldo.

Sources tell OneIndia that the talks would focus extensively on the disengagement at the other friction points.

The Indian government had reiterated earlier this week that the military commander level talks would be held within 48 hours after the complete disengagement at Pangong Tso.

The troop disengagement of the Indian and Chinese armies on both sides of the Pangong Lake has been completed.

The Ministry of External Affairs had said that both countries have agreed to convene the10th round senior commander level talks after the disengagement at Pangong Tso is complete. The next level of talks would focus on the remaining issues.

Sources say that the next round of talks would focus extensively on the disengagement at the Depsang Plains. The issues at the friction points will be taken up one by one and talks would continue until the complete disengagement takes place, the source also said.

On Tuesday, the Indian Army released video clips and photographs of the Chinese troops withdrawing from Pangong Tso area. The visuals released were from the Pangong Tso and Kailash Range area on the lake's south bank.

he clips showed the Chinese troops dismantling tents on a hillside as well down a mountain slope.

There is rapid movement of Chinese heavy vehicles beyond Finger 8, satellite images have shown.

While armoured elements like battle tanks and armoured personnel carriers are being withdrawn from friction points in the south bank of Pangong Tso, troops are being pulled back from the north bank areas, sources said.

The sources said withdrawal of armoured elements from the south bank of Pangong Tso is almost complete and temporary structures erected by both sides will be demolished in the next few days.

The disengagement of troops and armoured elements is limited to the friction points where the two sides were on an eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation, sources said.

After a nine-month standoff, the two militaries reached the agreement on disengagement in the north and south banks of Pangong lake that mandates both sides to cease forward deployment of troops in a "phased, coordinated and verifiable" manner.