The 23rd meeting of the special representatives (SR) on the India-China border question will be held in Beijing on 18 December 2024. The Indian delegation will be led by Ajit Doval, the National Security Advisor and the Indian SR. China will be represented by its SR, Wang Yi, who is a member of the political bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the foreign minister.
The SR Mechanism was established in 2003 through a joint declaration by the two countries during the visit of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to China. The arrangement has been instrumental in resolving disputes on the Line of Actual Control, thus maintaining peace and tranquillity. However, despite 22 meetings, it has not been able to make any progress on the resolution of the border issue.
This meeting assumes great importance as it is being held after a gap of five years since the last meeting held on 21 December 2019. Furthermore, it is happening after the resolution of the four-year-long LAC standoff in Eastern Ladakh.
While no detailed agenda has been given, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) press release states “The two SRs will discuss the management of peace & tranquillity in the border areas and explore a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable solution to the boundary question”. It is reasonable to assume that they will discuss the situation on the LAC, particularly in Eastern Ladakh and will endeavour to strengthen the existing procedures to avoid conflicts. The boundary question and its resolution are a more complex matter as no serious discussion has been held between the two countries since 1960 to define the disputed border.
Knowing Ajit Doval, he would have a well-defined blueprint of what is required by India from the talks. Officials from all branches of the government especially the Army and the MEA would have deliberated on every aspect of the likely discussion point, to frame the Indian strategy, redlines and points of agreement.
While discussing the means to manage the LAC peacefully the two SRs should be prepared to explore and formulate new ideas based on trust and transparency. Certain core issues requiring progress are analysed further:
The foremost should be to convert the LAC into Line of Control (LC) by defining it both on the map and on the ground. The mutually agreed-upon line should be without prejudice to the border claims of either party. This step alone has the potential to significantly reduce conflicts.
All the disputed areas on the LAC must be identified and treated as no entry zones, or alternatively patrolled jointly or by both sides as per mutually agreed schedules.
The Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India–China Border Affairs (WMCC) needs to be strengthened by providing more powers to deal with conflict situations.
At the ground level, more border personnel meeting (BPM) points should be established to facilitate more interaction between the forward troops. In addition, the existing mechanism of flag meetings should be encouraged to resolve local issues swiftly.
The LAC has seen a large build-up of troops from both sides which presents danger for minor incidents to escalate into a larger conflict. Therefore, the two sides must seriously explore the possibilities of mutually agreed reduction and redeployment of the forces along the LAC as per Article II of the 1993 Agreement and Articles II and III of the 1996 Agreement.
There will be a temptation to avoid the discussion on the boundary dispute and its long-term resolution, however, the meeting would not do justice to the expectations of the people if it does not make any headway on this account. Therefore, both SRs must earnestly endeavour to generate a model for continuous and more frequent engagements to discuss and resolve the boundary dispute.
This meeting of the SR mechanism on the India-China border issue is being held after an extended gap and at a time when both armies have just disengaged from a long standoff. The expectations of the people, more so the strategic and diplomatic communities of both countries, are high and they are expecting tangible steps that would take the bilateral relations on an upward trajectory. It is crucial that Ajit Doval and Wang Yi have the full backing of Modi and Xi who are both decisive leaders with strong mandates to bring about meaningful results.
The success of this dialogue depends on their ability to translate strategic intent into concrete outcomes that benefit both nations.
Major General Gajinder Singh (Retd)
