The Indian and Chinese troops are locked in an over-three-year confrontation in certain friction points in eastern Ladakh even as the two sides completed disengagement from several areas following extensive diplomatic and military talks.
With the arrival of the new batch, the number of Rafale aircraft has increased to eight. The first batch of five Rafale jets arrived in India on July 29, nearly four years after India signed an inter-governmental agreement with France to procure 36 aircraft at a cost of Rs 59,000 crore.
Outgoing Indian envoy to China Vikram Misri on Monday had a virtual farewell call on Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi during which he said that "certain challenges" had overpowered the vast opportunities in the bilateral ties last year and hoped that with continued communication the two sides would be able to resolve the current difficulties.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said India is a peace-loving nation that never resorts to any kind of aggression but is always prepared to give a befitting reply if provoked or threatened.
Sources said the process of disengagement along the Line of Actual Control is "complex", and in such a context, speculative and unsubstantiated reports need to be avoided.
This is the third round of Corps Commander-level talks being held. The first two rounds had taken place in Moldo on the Chinese side of the LAC.
External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said the diplomatic and military talks have helped both sides to enhance understanding of each other's positions on the issue.
He said China has accrued significant capacities for force mobilisation, application, and sustenance of military operations and maintained the long-pending boundary issue can not be divorced from bilateral relations between the two Asian giants.
"The contents of video being circulated are not authenticated. Attempt to link it with the situation on the Northern borders is mala fide," the army said in a statement. It said differences between the two sides are being addressed through interaction between military commanders following established protocols on management of border between the two countries.
The 18th edition of exercise Yudh Abhyas is scheduled to take place from October 14 to 31, sources in the defence and military establishment said on Wednesday.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said India faces a 'very complicated challenge' from China, and the Narendra Modi government has taken steps to ensure no attempts are made to change the status quo in the border areas unilaterally.
The Chief of the Army Staff interacted with almost all the injured soldiers and complimented them for their bravery.
"What just happened is that we have agreed on the need to disengage because the troops on both sides are deployed very close to each other. "So there is a disengagement and de-escalation process which has been agreed upon," he said during an video interactive session at the India Global Week.
Singh and Esper also deliberated on ways to further boost bilateral defence and security cooperation, they said, adding the telephonic conversation took place at the request of the US side.
India has already mobilised fighter jets and sent thousands of additional army troops to forward locations along the border with China after 20 Indian Army personnel were killed in a brutal attack by Chinese troops in eastern Ladakh's Galwan Valley on June 15.
Sources in the military establishment also said the present global scenario "necessitates a flexible and adaptive approach" to tackle defence and national security challenges.
The troops carried the Indian flag at various strategic locations along the border.
The Indian Army said the soldier, a Corporal in the Chinese People's Liberation Army(PLA), has been identified as Wang Ya Long and he will be returned to the Chinese military at the Chushul-Moldo border point after completion of formalities.
The chief was also briefed extensively about the air maintenance operations in support of the Indian Army and the paramilitary troops there.
There was no comment from the Indian side on the statement made by the Chinese defence ministry spokesperson Colonel Wu Qian, and carried by China's official media.
The agenda of the talks will be to firm up a roadmap for disengagement of troops from all the friction points in eastern Ladakh, the sources said.
The trade between India and China has touched an all-time high of $135.98 billion in 2022 while New Delhi's trade deficit with Beijing crossed for the first time a $100 billion mark despite frosty bilateral relations, according to data released by the Chinese customs on Friday. The total Sino-India trade for 2022 has climbed to 135.98 billion, overtaking the $125 billion mark a year earlier by registering an 8.4 per cent increase, according to the annual Chinese customs data. China's exports to India climbed to $118.5 billion, a year-on-year increase of 21.7 per cent.
As soon as one lands at the Leh airfield, one can see the Indian Air Force C-17s, Ilyushin-76s, and C-130J Super Hercules aircraft flying in with rations and supplies for the troops deployed on the forward locations opposite the Chinese forces.
Gen Rawat carried out an aerial recce of certain areas and was briefed about key aspects of the security matrix in the region by senior military commanders.
On Pakistan, the publication quoted him as saying that India wants "normal and neighborly relations."
Air Chief Marshal Bhadauria said the recent induction of Rafale jets along with previous acquisitions of C-17 Globemaster aircraft as well as Chinook and Apache helicopters have provided the IAF with substantial tactical and strategic capability enhancement.
'When armies start attacking with clubs and batons, then at some point this can take an escalatory spiral and spin out of control.'
The drone christened 'Bharat' has been developed by DRDO's Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory (TBRL), Chandigarh. It has been made to operate in high-altitude areas and can also adapt to extreme climates. It is also known to be agile.
As per the sources, the discussions between the two sides include pulling back tanks and armoured vehicles from their present positions, and some development in this regard is likely to take place in the next few days.
Gen Wang is the fourth commander to head the Western Theatre Command after the eastern Ladakh standoff began in May last year.
The Union Territory of Ladakh created history by successfully conducting its maiden 21-km trail running event in sub-zero temperature at 13,862 feet high Pangong Tso.
The frontline troops of China and India have "completed" disengagement at most locations of their border, a senior Chinese official said on Tuesday, adding the situation on the ground is easing.
'"I think the message has gone across to them very unambiguously that do not mess with us at sea and also at land for that matter'
The main focus will be on the situation in eastern Ladakh where Indian and Chinese troops are locked in an eyeball-to-eyeball face-off in sensitive areas like Pangong Tso, Galwan Valley, Demchok and Daulat Beg Oldie
Both sides have completed creation of a buffer zone of three kilometres in the three friction points of Galwan Valley, Gogra and Hot Springs as part of a temporary measure aimed at reducing the possibility of any confrontation.
In an interactive session at a think-tank in Paris, Jaishankar said he was optimistic about resolving the issue through dialogue and that significant headway has been made in many of the friction points.
Chinese mobile manufacturer Vivo will return to sponsor the IPL this season after its attempts to transfer the rights to another company failed to materialise as offers were not upto its "expectations".
The talks between the two sides have been going on for the last three months including five Lieutenant General-level talks but have failed to yield any results, so far.
The Taiwanese foreign minister said the time has come for all democratic countries to find ways to deal with China's expansionist agenda and its military muscle flexing, especially in the maritime domain.
As CDS, General Chauhan's primary task will be to implement the theaterisation model to bring in tri-services synergy by rolling out integrated military commands.
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