Ajai mentions de-escalation has already begun. Further corroboration required..
Doklam crisis begins winding down: Both sides reduce troops, China proposes new Sikkim border agreement | Broadsword | Aug 02
Fantastic news since India has just thrown out whatever agreements we had in place over for the entire border since the last twenty years.
Doklam: the word from Ground Zero | Broadsword | Aug 04 2017
Doklam crisis begins winding down: Both sides reduce troops, China proposes new Sikkim border agreement | Broadsword | Aug 02
The 45-day confrontation in Doklam has begun de-escalating. Top army sources tell Business Standard that the number of Chinese border guards at the contested border tri-junction between India, China and Bhutan is now down to just 40, from a peak of over 300 at the end of June.
Meanwhile, many Indian troops have also been pulled back. From a peak of almost 400 at the height of the crisis, there are now just 150 Indian soldiers in the contested Doklam bowl. In addition, a full Indian Army brigade, consisting of almost 3,000 troops, stands poised in Indian territory near the tri-junction, ready to respond to any emergency requiring the use of force.
As part of the de-escalation, the Chinese government has issued a lengthy, 15-page statement on Wednesday that uses tough language, but also evinces a new reasonableness. It demands “immediate and unconditional withdrawal” of Indian troops, but innocuously stating that, from “over 400 people at one point, [who] put up three tents and advanced over 180 meters into the Chinese territory… As of the end of July, there were still over 40 Indian border troops and one bulldozer illegally staying in the Chinese territory.”
Business Standard understands that Beijing and New Delhi have reached an understanding to mutually withdraw troops from the contested area, regardless of their public postures.
As this newspaper reported on July 19 (“With Doklam negotiations under way, military believes it has emerged victor”) Indian defence planners calculate that, in a stalemate, such as that emerging from a mutual and simultaneous withdrawal from Doklam, India would have achieved its security aims. The two-fold aim that India would have achieved includes demonstrating to Beijing New Delhi’s commitment to its security treaty with Bhutan; and keeping the Chinese at arm’s length from the vulnerable Siliguri corridor – a 27-kilometre wide bottleneck that connects the Indo-Gangetic Plain with India’s seven northeastern states.
Meanwhile, many Indian troops have also been pulled back. From a peak of almost 400 at the height of the crisis, there are now just 150 Indian soldiers in the contested Doklam bowl. In addition, a full Indian Army brigade, consisting of almost 3,000 troops, stands poised in Indian territory near the tri-junction, ready to respond to any emergency requiring the use of force.
As part of the de-escalation, the Chinese government has issued a lengthy, 15-page statement on Wednesday that uses tough language, but also evinces a new reasonableness. It demands “immediate and unconditional withdrawal” of Indian troops, but innocuously stating that, from “over 400 people at one point, [who] put up three tents and advanced over 180 meters into the Chinese territory… As of the end of July, there were still over 40 Indian border troops and one bulldozer illegally staying in the Chinese territory.”
Business Standard understands that Beijing and New Delhi have reached an understanding to mutually withdraw troops from the contested area, regardless of their public postures.
As this newspaper reported on July 19 (“With Doklam negotiations under way, military believes it has emerged victor”) Indian defence planners calculate that, in a stalemate, such as that emerging from a mutual and simultaneous withdrawal from Doklam, India would have achieved its security aims. The two-fold aim that India would have achieved includes demonstrating to Beijing New Delhi’s commitment to its security treaty with Bhutan; and keeping the Chinese at arm’s length from the vulnerable Siliguri corridor – a 27-kilometre wide bottleneck that connects the Indo-Gangetic Plain with India’s seven northeastern states.
In a significant development, the statement proposes: “The Chinese and Indian sides have been in discussion on making the boundary in the Sikkim Sector an ‘early harvest’ in the settlement of the entire boundary question during the meetings between the Special Representatives on the China-India Boundary Question…
Doklam: the word from Ground Zero | Broadsword | Aug 04 2017
Indian Army officers participating in the Doklam faceoff have provided Business Standard the first detailed accounts of how the situation has evolved.
They say the Doklam bowl – which is disputed between China and Bhutan – currently has an extended, 200-metre long line of Indian infantry soldiers confronting a smaller number of Chinese border guards. Just one metre separates the two lines.
At any time, there are about 40 Chinese border guards in the disputed valley, facing off against three times that number of Indian jawans.
Backing up the Chinese front line are another 1,500 troops, a mix of border guards and regular People’s Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers. These are positioned outside the disputed Doklam area, but cross in and out of the disputed area, relieving those on the front line at regular intervals.
Indian troops standing guard in Doklam are similarly relieved by a full infantry battalion (600 troops), located in Indian territory to the west. Backing up this battalion is a full infantry brigade (2,000 troops), ready to respond to any military moves from China.
In addition, a second fully acclimatised infantry brigade, slightly further away, stands ready to respond to a crisis.
“We fortunately had two brigades training in high altitudes nearby, so we have plenty of acclimatised troops. If needed, we can muster far more forces than the Chinese in Sikkim. This would never be an area where they start something”, says a senior Indian commander.
According to these officers’, tension began in early June, when Indian forces in the vicinity observed Chinese patrols reconnoitring the track in the disputed Doklam bowl. Intelligence assessments concluded that China was going to try and extend the road towards the Jampheri Ridge, at the farthest edge of China’s claim line.
Indian commanders strongly rejected yesterday’s statement by China’s foreign ministry, which claimed that India had been notified on May 18 and June 8, “out of goodwill through the border meeting mechanism”, that China would be building a road in Doklam.
They say, the Indian army reported to Delhi that road building seemed imminent, and were granted permission to cross into Bhutan-claimed territory to stop construction.
When India crossed into Doklam and confronted the Chinese construction parties, “they were taken completely by surprise and offered no resistance”, says an officer privy to events. “These are no soldiers; they are conscripted border guards, who live in heated barracks and periodically patrol the border in vehicles. They don’t walk much”, says an Indian commander.
“Our soldiers, in contrast, live a far tougher life. In Doklam, they stand guard without moving, while the Chinese keep breaking the line and going back for cigarette breaks. Indian morale is sky-high; soldiers know they are participating in something unprecedented – crossing a border to defend an Indian ally”, says the Indian officer.
Eventually, the Chinese had to send in a political commissar, recount Indian officers. “The commissar ordered up martial music and the hoisting of Chinese flags to stiffen resolve. They clearly had problems”, he says.
In the macho manner of militaries, the Indian Army is using a large number of Sikh and Jat soldiers to man the line in Doklam – in the expectation that their height and sturdiness would intimidate the smaller Chinese.
Army officers are elated also at having kept the confrontation out of the media for a full ten days, until Beijing was forced to make the incident public. “The Chinese have always complained that India’s media is too shrill and pro-active. This time, China had to mobilise their media, because we were there on the ground and nobody knew.”
Indian soldiers also point out that China has begun building bunkers and creating defences on the border. “That’s another first. They are recognising our capability to act decisively”, says an officer.
According to a senior Indian general: “The situation in Doklam has plateaued. Militarily, the Chinese know they can do nothing here. Eventually it will have to be a negotiated withdrawal, or the Chinese will have to open a front in another sector.”
With Beijing warning on Friday that “Chinese armed forces will resolutely protect the country's territorial sovereignty and security interests”, the PLA could choose its next move anywhere on a long, 3,500-kilometre border that stretches from Ladakh to Myanmar.
They say the Doklam bowl – which is disputed between China and Bhutan – currently has an extended, 200-metre long line of Indian infantry soldiers confronting a smaller number of Chinese border guards. Just one metre separates the two lines.
At any time, there are about 40 Chinese border guards in the disputed valley, facing off against three times that number of Indian jawans.
Backing up the Chinese front line are another 1,500 troops, a mix of border guards and regular People’s Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers. These are positioned outside the disputed Doklam area, but cross in and out of the disputed area, relieving those on the front line at regular intervals.
Indian troops standing guard in Doklam are similarly relieved by a full infantry battalion (600 troops), located in Indian territory to the west. Backing up this battalion is a full infantry brigade (2,000 troops), ready to respond to any military moves from China.
In addition, a second fully acclimatised infantry brigade, slightly further away, stands ready to respond to a crisis.
“We fortunately had two brigades training in high altitudes nearby, so we have plenty of acclimatised troops. If needed, we can muster far more forces than the Chinese in Sikkim. This would never be an area where they start something”, says a senior Indian commander.
According to these officers’, tension began in early June, when Indian forces in the vicinity observed Chinese patrols reconnoitring the track in the disputed Doklam bowl. Intelligence assessments concluded that China was going to try and extend the road towards the Jampheri Ridge, at the farthest edge of China’s claim line.
Indian commanders strongly rejected yesterday’s statement by China’s foreign ministry, which claimed that India had been notified on May 18 and June 8, “out of goodwill through the border meeting mechanism”, that China would be building a road in Doklam.
They say, the Indian army reported to Delhi that road building seemed imminent, and were granted permission to cross into Bhutan-claimed territory to stop construction.
When India crossed into Doklam and confronted the Chinese construction parties, “they were taken completely by surprise and offered no resistance”, says an officer privy to events. “These are no soldiers; they are conscripted border guards, who live in heated barracks and periodically patrol the border in vehicles. They don’t walk much”, says an Indian commander.
“Our soldiers, in contrast, live a far tougher life. In Doklam, they stand guard without moving, while the Chinese keep breaking the line and going back for cigarette breaks. Indian morale is sky-high; soldiers know they are participating in something unprecedented – crossing a border to defend an Indian ally”, says the Indian officer.
Eventually, the Chinese had to send in a political commissar, recount Indian officers. “The commissar ordered up martial music and the hoisting of Chinese flags to stiffen resolve. They clearly had problems”, he says.
In the macho manner of militaries, the Indian Army is using a large number of Sikh and Jat soldiers to man the line in Doklam – in the expectation that their height and sturdiness would intimidate the smaller Chinese.
Army officers are elated also at having kept the confrontation out of the media for a full ten days, until Beijing was forced to make the incident public. “The Chinese have always complained that India’s media is too shrill and pro-active. This time, China had to mobilise their media, because we were there on the ground and nobody knew.”
Indian soldiers also point out that China has begun building bunkers and creating defences on the border. “That’s another first. They are recognising our capability to act decisively”, says an officer.
According to a senior Indian general: “The situation in Doklam has plateaued. Militarily, the Chinese know they can do nothing here. Eventually it will have to be a negotiated withdrawal, or the Chinese will have to open a front in another sector.”
With Beijing warning on Friday that “Chinese armed forces will resolutely protect the country's territorial sovereignty and security interests”, the PLA could choose its next move anywhere on a long, 3,500-kilometre border that stretches from Ladakh to Myanmar.
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