HOW TO BREAK THE IMPASSE

The gridlock in eastern Ladakh is total, and the border crisis between India and China seems to have hit a cul-de-sac. In analysing the current situation, four critical issues merit attention. To begin with, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has not vacated its areas of intrusions in eastern Ladakh despite the protracted parleys. There is intransigence in the PLA’s attitude, as evident in the latest round of talks held after the foreign ministers had arrived at a consensus to “quickly disengage”. In the absence of any breakthrough in the negotiations, the PLA will make their positions permanent, thereby completing the unilateral alteration to the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

Then, there is a clear failure of the existing agreements, protocols and confidence-building measures. A weakening of the agreements was visible in the past