China says working with India for further de-escalation of border standoff

Beijing: China and India are working for further de-escalation of the border standoff in eastern Ladakh and both sides will have consultations to determine specific arrangements for the next round of talks, a senior Chinese official said on Tuesday.

The Chinese and Indian armies held the 8th round of Corps Commander-level meeting on November 6 to resolve the border standoff that erupted in early May.

Asked when the next round of talks will be held, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a media briefing here that “China and India have been in communication through diplomatic and military channels on the border issue and we are working for further de-escalation of the border situation.”

“Based on the implementation of current consensus, we will have consultations to determine specific arrangements for further talks,” she said.

Nearly 50,000 troops of the Indian Army are deployed in a high state of combat readiness in various mountainous locations in eastern Ladakh in sub-zero conditions as multiple rounds of talks between the two sides have not yielded any concrete outcome yet to resolve the border standoff. China has also deployed an equal number of troops, according to officials.