Context: India and China have renewed diplomatic activity such as border patrol agreements, resumption of direct flights and efforts to expand trade and cultural exchanges.
Relevance of the Topic: Mains: India - China bilateral relations.
India-China border is un-demarcated and is referred to as the Line of Actual Control (LAC). The border length is around 3,488 km as per India, while China claims it to be about 2,000 km. The different interpretations by the two countries leads to frequent disputes.
The border is divided into three main sectors
- Western Sector (Ladakh, ~1597 km): Aksai Chin (~38,000 sq. km) under Chinese occupation, and China also controls Shaksgam Valley ceded by Pakistan in 1963.
- Middle Sector (Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, ~545 km) which is the least disputed, though differences exist near the Barahoti plains.
- Eastern Sector (Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim, ~1346 km) where China claims about 90,000 sq. km of Arunachal Pradesh as “South Tibet,” while the Sikkim boundary is formally settled but still faces PLA activity.
India-China Border Dispute
- Historically, the 1914 Simla Agreement drew the McMahon Line between British India and Tibet, but China rejected it.
- China occupied Tibet in 1950 and built a road in Aksai Chin in the 1950s.
- The 1962 India-China war resulted in India’s defeat, with China retaining Aksai Chin and withdrawing from its advances in Arunachal Pradesh, leaving the boundary issue unresolved. India-China relations after the 1962 war remained tense, with little progress on the boundary dispute.
- In 1988, Rajiv Gandhi’s visit to Beijing marked a turning point, as it re-opened dialogue after decades of mistrust.
- However, political instability in India (1989-1991) slowed progress until P.V. Narasimha Rao’s government (1991-1996) was able to re-focus on China.
Initial Steps (1988-1992):
- Between 1988 and 1993, six rounds of talks of the Joint Working Group (JWG) were held.
- The dialogue included both diplomats and military commanders, with first meetings at Bum La (eastern sector) and Chushul/Moldo (western sector) in 1992.
- Border trade resumed in 1992 after a gap of over 30 years, and consulates were re-opened in Mumbai and Shanghai in December 1992.
Border Peace and Tranquillity Agreement (BPTA), 1993:
- Signed during Prime Minister Narasimha Rao’s visit to Beijing in September 1993.
- Core Principle: The boundary dispute would be resolved peacefully, and neither side would use or threaten force.
- The Agreement recognised the Line of Actual Control (LAC) for the first time in an official bilateral document. Both sides agreed :
- Not to cross the LAC; if intrusions occurred, forces would withdraw upon caution.
- To jointly check and determine contested segments of the LAC.
- To maintain minimal force levels along the LAC and reduce them on the principle of mutual and equal security.
- To freeze the military situation, acknowledging India’s geographic disadvantage compared to China’s easy access through the Tibetan plateau.
The agreement emphasised setting aside the boundary dispute to build cooperation in other areas.
1996 Agreement on Confidence-Building Measures:
- Signed during Chinese President Jiang Zemin’s visit to India in 1996.
- Expanded upon the 1993 BPTA by specifying military confidence-building measures (CBMs).
- Both sides agreed :
- Not to use force and to continue peaceful consultations.
- To reduce or limit military forces and heavy weaponry (tanks, artillery, missiles) in border areas.
- To avoid large-scale military exercises near the LAC; if held, exercises would be directed away from the other side.
- Article X: Stressed the need for a common understanding of the LAC alignment. Both sides committed to exchange maps for clarification and confirmation.
Challenge of LAC Clarification
- In 2000, both sides exchanged maps of the relatively undisputed Central sector.
- In 2002, maps of the western sector were exchanged, but were rejected within minutes as they represented maximalist positions of both sides.
- By 2005, efforts to clarify the LAC were abandoned.
- Key contested areas included: Samar Langpa, Trig Heights, Depsang, Kong Ka La, Pangong Tso, Spanggur Gap, Mount Sajun, Dumchele, Demchok, and Chumar. These same areas became flashpoints in later standoffs, including in 2020.
The 1993 and 1996 agreements marked important milestones in institutionalising peace and stability along the border. However, the failure to define and clarify the LAC meant that the agreements could only postpone and not prevent future confrontations.
The failure to achieve a mutually accepted definition of the Line of Actual Control left the core dispute unresolved making subsequent tensions and face-offs inevitable.
Also Read: hTaking stock of India-China Bilateral Ties