LAC stand-off on but Indian, Chinese soldiers exchange sweets on New Years Day

The soldiers of the Indian Army and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army on Saturday exchanged sweets to ring in the new year, including at some of the stand-off points along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) – the de facto boundary between the two nations – in eastern Ladakh.

The Indian Army also exchanged sweets with the Pakistan Army along the Line of Control (LoC) between the two countries in Jammu and Kashmir on the occasion of New Year’s Day.

The soldiers of the Indian Army and the Chinese PLA exchanged greetings and sweets, not only at the Chushul-Moldo meeting point but also at five other locations along the LAC in eastern Ladakh, including K K Pass, Daulat Beg Oldie (DBO), Bottleneck, Konkala, Hotspring and Demchok. The two sides also held brief ceremonies to exchange sweets at Nathu La and Kongra La in Sikkim and Bum La and Wacha Damai in Arunachal Pradesh.

Also Read | India, Pakistan armies exchange sweets on New Year along LoC in Jammu and Kashmir

This is the first time the Indian Army and the Chinese PLA exchanged sweets on any occasion after the stand-off started along the LAC in eastern Ladakh in April-May 2020. The 21-month-long stand-off brought the relations between New Delhi and Beijing to a new low.

The stand-off started in April-May 2020 when the Indian Army had to deploy additional troops in response to the Chinese PLA’s move to amass a large number of troops near the LAC in an obvious attempt to unilaterally change the status quo along the disputed boundary and to push the line westward. It reached a flashpoint on June 15, 2020, when 20 Indian Army soldiers and at least four Chinese PLA personnel had been killed in a violent clash at Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh.

The negotiations between diplomats and senior military commanders of India and China resulted in the mutual withdrawal of front-line troops by the Chinese PLA and the Indian Army from the northern and southern banks of Pangong Tso (lake) in February and from the Gogra Post in August last year. The two sides, however, could not yet agree on disengagement in other remaining face-off points along the LAC.

Also Read | India, China 'effectively managed, controlled' eastern Ladakh frictions: Chinese FM Wang Yi

The recent incursion attempts by the Chinese PLA soldiers in Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh fuelled speculation about the possibility of the stand-off along the LAC in the western sector spreading to the middle and eastern sectors too.

The Indian Army also presented sweets to Pakistan Army at Chilehana-Tithwal crossing point on the LoC, on the occasion of the new year. The Indian Army officials stated that the exchange of sweets displayed India’s will to maintain peace along the LoC with Pakistan.

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