No firm commitments on restoring the April 2020 status quo ante on Ladakh Line of Actual Control (LAC) forthcoming from Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Wang flew to Nepal on Friday after holding talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.

The Indian Army will remain deployed on the Ladakh LAC as the PLA forces continue to be deployed in the occupied Aksai Chin area and in-depth areas of Xinjiang and Tibet. The massive military up-gradation of infrastructure by PLA all along the 3488 km LAC has pushed the Indian Army to respond in kind.

The adherence to bilateral 1993-96 border agreements by the PLA would be a challenge. The Chinese Army reports only to President Xi Jinping as Chairman of the Central Military Commission. One must recall that it took India and China nearly eight years to normalize the 1986 stand-off caused by PLA transgressions in Arunachal Pradesh.

Adherence to 1993-96 border agreements, peace, and tranquility on the LAC is the key to normal India-China bilateral ties.

NSA Ajit Doval clearly pointed fingers at the Chinese deep defence relationship with Pakistan and with other countries in the Indian sub-continent. The message was that India will also dabble in the Chinese neighbourhood if the mutual security clause continues to be violated. Hope Foreign Minister Wang has got the message.