India, China begin new border mechanism

Beijing, March 6, 2012, PTI:

India and China on Tuesday operationalised the recent agreement on border coordination mechanism by framing mutually agreed rules to avert conflict at the disputed frontier.

The Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs, which was formed during the 15th round of border talks in New Delhi in January, has now been operationalised, an Indian official who attended the first meeting told PTI here.
The border mechanism was formed to avoid any untoward incidents between the troops on ground while patrolling the various points.

The two-day talks, which concluded on Tuesday, were held between an Indian delegation led by Gautam Bambawale, Joint Secretary (East Asia) of the External Affairs Ministry and Deng Zhonghua, Director-General, Department of Boundary and Oceanic Affairs of China.

The two sides also discussed the possibility of an alternate route for the Kailash Manasarovar Yatra and additional items for border trade at Nathu La Pass in Sikkim.

The seven-member Indian delegation included senior officials of the Home and Defence ministries as well as members of the Indian Army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police.
The Chinese delegation included representatives from Foreign Ministry and Ministry of National Defence.

India and China have held 15 rounds of talks by special representatives to resolve differences over demarcation of the borders.

“The talks were held in a constructive and forward looking atmosphere with the common objective of continuing to maintain peace and tranquility in the India-China border areas,” a statement issued by the Indian side.

The Indian statement said the two delegations “agreed on the rules governing the functioning of the mechanism, which include convening one or two meetings a year, and if required, holding of emergency consultations either through meetings or by telephone/video conferencing”.

The meeting also reviewed the situation prevailing in the India-China border areas and noted the adherence by both sides to the various agreements for maintenance of peace and tranquility.

“At the same time, they stressed the need for continuing efforts towards this objective and discussed additional confidence building measures between the two sides,” it said. The next meeting will be held in India at a mutually agreed dates.