Expect China to match words with action, says India on LAC situation

New Delhi: Even as China has claimed that it "strictly complied" with border agreements with India, New Delhi on Friday said it expects the "Chinese side will match its words with actions". The forces of China's People's Liberation Army continue the build-up at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh. 

Pointing out how the "situation that we have seen since the last six months has been a result of the actions of the Chinese side", Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Anurag Shrivastava said China has "sought to effect a unilateral change in status along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Eastern Ladakh".

He added that "these actions are in violation of the bilateral agreements and protocol on ensuring peace and tranquillity along the LAC in the India-China border areas".

The year 2020 not only saw one of the longest build-ups by China at the LAC but also a violent clash at Galwan valley that led to the death of 20 Indian soldiers. India has repeatedly pointed out, how China has been violating the 1993 and 1996 agreements. The violation includes the amassing of troops and attempts to take "unilateral action" to alter the situation at LAC".

Both sides have had multiple rounds of diplomatic and military talks, including two in-person meetings between defence and foreign ministers of both the countries, but China has not done anything to defuse the situation on the ground.

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New Delhi has been calling for an agreement on a "mutually acceptable solution" for ensuring "complete disengagement" in all friction points along the LAC but Beijing continues to drag its feet.