Over 1100 interactions happen between Indian, Chinese militaries annually to prevent misunderstandings, address border issues: Army Chief Gen Dwivedi
New Delhi, June 29
The situation along the China border is stable even though it continues to be sensitive, requiring constant vigilance, outgoing Army chief General Upendra Dwivedi has said and added that the two militaries hold over 1100 ground-level interactions annually to prevent misunderstandings and address routine border issues.
In an interaction with ANI, Gen Dwivedi said the disengagement agreements have contributed significantly to improving stability on the ground and both sides are displaying greater responsiveness towards each other's concerns.
"The period of 2024-25 also witnessed encouraging developments in the broader bilateral relationship, reflected in the frequency and quality of military and diplomatic engagements," he said.
The outgoing Army chief said a number of positive indicators point towards gradual normalisation including the establishment of an Experts Group on boundary delimitation, a Working Group on border management, the resumption of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra and direct flights, consensus on reopening border trade through designated passes and certain visa facilitation measures.
"At the military level, sustained engagement has played an important role in maintaining peace and tranquillity. More than 1,100 ground-level interactions take place annually between the two sides to address routine border management issues and prevent misunderstandings," he said.
He said that the "overall situation is being managed through well-established mechanisms. Whenever local issues arise due to differing perceptions of the LAC, they are addressed through military-to-military interactions, hotlines, flag meetings and commander-level engagements. These mechanisms have helped ensure stability and facilitate routine activities, including patrolling and other local interactions in border areas."
Gen Dwivedi said the Indian Army's priorities remain clear: "First, we must preserve peace and tranquillity along the LAC. Second, we seek to resolve local issues through dialogue and established mechanisms. Third, we remain committed to maintaining a robust and credible deployment posture to deter any potential threat. Simultaneously, we continue to strengthen infrastructure, logistics, surveillance capabilities and overall operational preparedness along the Northern Borders."
He said the Indian Army is committed to engagement and dialogue wherever required. "However, our approach is based on peace through strength. The Indian Army's posture along the LAC will continue to remain firm, credible, vigilant and fully capable of safeguarding India's territorial integrity and national interests."
— ANI
Reader Comments
Gen Dwivedi's approach is very balanced - engagement where possible, but not at the cost of security. Happy to hear about resumption of Kailash Mansarovar Yatra and border trade. These people-to-people contacts are essential for long-term peace. 🤝 We should keep talking and patrolling as per agreements. Dil se hope karte hain ki yeh stability bani rahe.
1100 interactions is a huge number! That's roughly 3 meetings every single day. Shows both sides are serious about managing the border. But let's not get too comfortable - Gen Dwivedi rightly says 'peace through strength' and maintaining credible deterrent posture. We need to keep modernizing our forces. The situation is stable, not resolved permanently.
As an outsider looking in, this seems like a very pragmatic approach by the Indian Army. Regular communication and established mechanisms to handle local issues is how you prevent small incidents from escalating. The mention of both military and diplomatic engagements improving is encouraging. Hope this continues despite global tensions.
A practical and mature approach. Instead of grandstanding, the Army is focusing on ground-level management. The 1100 interactions figure shows huge effort at all levels. But I hope these interactions aren't just token talks - they should lead to concrete resolution of local disputes. Kudos to Gen Dwivedi for emphasizing both dialogue AND deterrence. 👏
Good to see the emphasis on 'gradual normalization' - reopening Kailash Mansarovar yatra and visa facilitation are significant confidence-building measures. But we must remember that China's overall posture hasn't changed.
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