India and China have reached an agreement to end the confrontation along a disputed border Doklam plateau in the eastern Himalayas. India and China reach consensus on disengagement of border personnel at Doklam faceoff site.
The decision follows diplomatic communications between the two countries. India’s Ministry of External Affairs said that “expeditious disengagement of border personnel” has been agreed to at the face-off site, and is ongoing.
Though the withdrawal is mutually agreed, it is still unclear if the Chinese troops are reciprocating India’s disengagement move.
It began when Indian troops obstructed China from building a road at Doklam, a Himalayan plateau disputed between China and Bhutan.
Since then, about 300 troops from each side have been confronting each other, raising fears of a wider conflict.
Fears that control of the plateau would give Chinese troops easy access to a strategic strip of land which connects India to its northeast had prompted India to refuse to vacate the territory, despite angry demands by China.
While China accused India of entering its territory, India maintained the plateau was disputed territory between Bhutan and China and it had moved in to help its tiny neighbor.
This decision comes ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to China for BRICS Summit.