fredag 11. september 2020

China and India agree to disengage at disputed border

India and China have agreed to “disengage as soon as possible” after troops were involved in a series of clashes at their disputed Himalayan border, according to a joint statement from the two countries. The nuclear-armed neighbours accused each other this week of firing shots across the contested border in Ladakh, known as the line of actual control (LAC), intensifying a months-long standoff that has already claimed at least 20 lives.

After a meeting on Thursday between Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi and his Indian counterpart, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, in Moscow, a joint statement said the two sides had agreed to de-escalate. “Border defence forces of both countries should continue dialogue, disengage as soon as possible, maintain the necessary distance, and ease the situation on the ground,” the statement said.