Agencies

China has withdrawn its troops by at least a kilometre in the tense Galwan river valley in eastern Ladakh, where 20 Indian soldiers were killed in a deadly brawl with Chinese troops on June 15, Indian sources said yesterday.

Indian soldiers have also pulled back and a buffer zone has been created between the troops of both sides to prevent escalation. “We will need to wait to see if this is a lasting, genuine disengagement,” the sources told AFP.

China’s People’s Liberation Army was seen removing tents and structures at patrolling point 14, near the place where the clashes took place, they said.

The one-km withdrawal by China came after special representatives of India and China agreed to disengage, “take guidance from the consensus of leaders” and “not allow differences to become disputes,” they added.

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who had a conversation over phone on Sunday, decided that both sides should “strictly respect and observe” the Line of Actual Control -- the de facto border between India and China -- and should not take any unilateral action to alter the status quo, the Indian government said.

The two sides agreed that “it was necessary to ensure at the earliest complete disengagement of the troops along the LAC and de-escalation from India-China border areas”, New Delhi said in a statement.

“In this regard they further agreed that both sides should complete the ongoing disengagement process along the LAC expeditiously,” the statement added.

In response to a question on whether China had moved back equipment in the Galwan valley, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said both sides were “taking effective measures to disengage and ease the situation on the border”.