LAC situation sensitive, not normal, says army chief

The army chief said that positive signalling is coming from the diplomatic side, but execution of the ground is dependent on military commanders of both sides

Army chief General Upendra Dwivedi on Tuesday said that the situation along the contested Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh “stable, but not normal”, amid the dragging military standoff with China.

He also said that trust has become “the biggest casualty” amid the standoff. (Hindustan Times)

“The situation is sensitive,” he said at the Chanakya Defence Dialogue 2024, an event organised by the Indian Army in collaboration with the think tank Centre for Land Warfare Studies.

He also said that trust has become “the biggest casualty” amid the standoff.

Positive signalling is coming from the diplomatic side, but execution of the ground is dependent on military commanders of both sides, he said.

“What we must understand is that the diplomatic side gives you options and possibilities. But when it comes to execution on the ground, it is dependent on the military commanders on both sides to take those decisions. So, what is the situation today – it is stable but not normal, and sensitive.”

The military standoff between India and China in eastern Ladakh is now in its fifth year, with no indication of an immediate resolution to the outstanding problems along LAC even as India is hoping that ongoing negotiations with the neighbour will help restore the status quo ante of April 2020.

“What are we wanting? We are wanting is that the situation what was there pre-April 2020 be restored, whether it is the ground occupation situation, buffer zones or patrolling. Till the time that situation is not restored, as far as we are concerned, we are fully operationally ready for any kind of contingency,” he said.

India and China have held several rounds of diplomatic and military talks to cool tensions along LAC.

“And we have come a long way. The low hanging fruit has already been resolved...Everything is on the (negotiating) table along the northern front, including Depsang and Demchok,” the army chief said.

The talks have thus far resulted in four rounds of disengagement from Galwan Valley, Pangong Tso, Gogra (PP-17A) and Hot Springs (PP-15), but problems at Depsang and Demchok are still unresolved.

Both armies still have tens of thousands of troops each and advanced weaponry deployed in the Ladakh theatre.