China-India boundary meeting reaches 8-point consensus

The 25th round of talks between the special representatives of China and India on the boundary question, which was held on Tuesday in Beijing, achieved an 8-point consensus, according to a press release by the Chinese Foreign Ministry on Wednesday.

Chinese Special Representative (SR) Wang Yi, who is also member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, and India's Special Representative Ajit Doval, also national security advisor, had a candid and in-depth exchange of views on the China-India boundary question and reached consensus on eight points as follows:

The two sides reaffirmed their commitment to uphold the guidance received from the leaders of the two countries, maintain peace and tranquility in the border areas and create an atmosphere for healthy and steady development of bilateral relations.

The two sides underlined their commitment to advancing negotiations on a framework for the settlement of the boundary question in accordance with the Agreement on Political Parameters and Guiding Principles for Settlement of the China-India Boundary Question signed in 2005 and the consensus reached in subsequent SR talks, in pursuit of a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable solution.

The Expert Group on Boundary Delimitation and Working Group on Border Management under the framework of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) on China-India Border Affairs would respectively advance discussions on an early and substantial harvest of boundary delimitation and border management. The first task for both these groups would be to agree on their respective terms of reference.

The two sides agreed that any situation on the ground would be addressed promptly through existing diplomatic and military channels, including the WMCC, local commander-level meetings and other agreed mechanisms, to resolve outstanding issues and avoid misunderstanding and miscalculation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). The two sides discussed ways to improve understanding of the LAC in appropriate areas for better border management.

With the objective of improving border management measures, two additional meeting points were agreed upon for holding the General Level Mechanism/Senior Highest Military Commander meeting (SHMC). Similarly, two additional border military hotline channels in the eastern and middle sectors were agreed upon.

Both sides noted the progress on trans-border cooperation. The Indian side appreciated the efforts made by the Chinese side to increase the number of batches of Indian official pilgrimage to Mount Gang Renpoche and Lake Mapam Yun Tso in Xizang Autonomous Region of China. Both sides appreciated the reopening of the three designated border trading points. The two sides agreed to strengthen exchanges and cooperation in border trade, pilgrimage and other areas, with the view of working together to create an atmosphere featuring dialogue, peace, consultation and cooperation in the border areas.

The two sides agreed to hold the next meeting of the China-India Expert-Level Mechanism on Trans-border Rivers in September and maintain communication on issues including hydrological data sharing, and renewal of relevant MoUs.

The two sides agreed to hold the 26th round of SR talks in India in 2027.