On LAC standoff with China, Army Chief says both militaries will see how ‘positive signalling’ at diplomatic level can translate on ground

The Army Chief was speaking at a curtain raiser event of the Chanakya Defence Dialogue 2024 — a forum where military leaders and experts discuss contemporary issues on national and regional security.

The Indian Express report from September 26.

Responding to a question on the progress made at the recent diplomatic and political-level talks between India and China on resolution of pending issues along the LAC, he said both sides have come a long way since April 2020, with multiple rounds of diplomatic and military parleys having taken place and much of the “low hanging fruits resolved”.

“But when it comes to difficult situations, where both sides have a different perception (of the LAC), it means that both sides will need to have, like in any negotiation, a win-win situation,” he said.

“So, some kind of an indication has been given from both the diplomatic sides. Now, the military side will sit together and see how this can be translated on the ground,” he said, adding that every issue related to the northern front would be on the table, including the pending resolution of Depsang plains and Demchok in eastern Ladakh.

The Army Chief’s comments come days after The Indian Express reported, on September 26, that India and China have made “significant progress” in narrowing the gap on pending issues along the LAC in eastern Ladakh, which includes exploring the contours of a possible solution that factors in their respective pre-April 2020 positions, while agreeing to address existing issues in Arunachal Pradesh.

Top officials had confirmed that the development took place during the latest diplomatic and political level talks between both sides. The delegation for the 31st Working Mechanism for Consultation & Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC) held talks in Beijing on August 29.

General Dwivedi said that despite the “positive signalling” from both the diplomatic sides, it needs to be understood that the diplomatic side gives options and possibilities. “When it comes to execution on ground, it is dependent on the military commanders on both sides to take those decisions,” he said.

The Indian Express had also reported that the 22nd round of military talks between India and China at the Corps Commanders’ level is expected to be held soon to chalk out the modalities — including the timeframe – of the deployment of troops from either side, based on the mutual agreement reached. Until the exact redeployment plans – which are still taking shape — are implemented, the existing deployment of troops and patrolling will continue.

While talking about the current situation at the LAC, the Army Chief said: “We are wanting that the situation that was there pre-April 2020, that should be restored back, whether in terms of the ground occupation situation, the buffer zones which had been created or the patrolling planned as of now.”

“So, till the time that situation is not restored, as far as we are concerned, the situation will remain sensitive and we are fully operationally prepared to face any kind of a contingency that might come,” he said, adding that in the entire gamut of things, trust has become the biggest casualty.

China has been “intriguing our mind” for quite some time, he said, adding that with China you have to compete, cooperate, coexist, confront and contest.

On the ongoing buildup of Chinese infrastructure along the LAC, including model villages, he said that given that the Chinese and Tibetan population don’t reside close to the LAC, Beijing was carrying out artificial immigration and settlement in the area.

If this is looked at in conjunction with the situation in the South China Sea, there is the possibility of some kind of grey zone getting created in the process, where the causation may look simple, but may have a grandiose design behind it, he said, adding, “that’s what we need to look into.”

The Army has been working on model villages along the borders and a number of projects like Op Sadbhavna are operational there, he said. “This is the time where the Army, state government and the supervision by the central government, all three are coming together. The model villages coming up now will be much better,” he said.

The Army Chief also spoke on Israel using pager explosions to target the Hezbollah in Lebanon. “The shell company which has been created is something which is a masterstroke by Israelis. And for that it requires years and years of preparation. War does not start the day you start fighting, it starts the day you start planning,” he said.

Israel is reported to have set up shell companies to disguise the identities of those making the pagers, with a supply chain stretching from Taiwan to Hungary.

Israel first made sure the pagers would explode, injuring or killing people, he said, adding that when they shifted to cellphones, the signals would be triangulated. He said while Nasrullah was “creating a live relay”, they identified the building where he was by triangulating the signal. “This has not been heard of earlier,” he said.

Talking about concerns for India, he said supply chain interruption and interception is something India must be watchful about, and there should be various levels of inspection at the technological and manual levels so that India does not face a similar incident.

On the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir, General Dwivedi said with the infiltration of foreign terrorists, the Army had “re-oriented, re-energised and re-focused” its forces deployed there.

Talking about the situation in Manipur, he said it was currently a battle of narratives, with polarisation between the communities. “It is stable today, but is tense,” he said. “We are trying to calm the situation and restore trust. It will take time,” he said.

The Army Chief also spoke on the need to harmonise on grey zone warfare. He said a structure on the creation of theatre commands – involving integration among the three services — is ready to be presented to the decision makers.