'Restore status quo at LAC': Rajnath Singh tells China at SCO meet in Moscow

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday called for the restoration of status quo ante at all friction points in eastern Ladakh during the sidelines of a key Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meet with his Chinese counterpart General Wei Fenghe in Moscow, This was the first highest-level face-to-face meeting between the two sides since the violent face-off erupted at the LAC in June.

The two and a half-hour-long talk that began around 9:30 pm (IST) at a prominent hotel in Moscow was focused on ways to resolve the prolonged border standoff in Ladakh.

Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar and Indian Ambassador to Russia DB Venkatesh Varma were part of the Indian delegation at the talks held after a request from Gen. Wei.

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Previously, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had held telephonic talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on the border standoff. India strongly objected to PLA’s fresh attempts to change the status quo in the southern bank of Pangong lake in eastern Ladakh and insisted on resolving the conflict through talks.

The Indian side of China to completely 'disengage and de-escalate' the situation at LAC, as agreed to by the two nations' Foreign Ministers.

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Indian Army pre-empts Chinese attack

On August 31, the Indian Army said that the Chinese side carried out provocative military movements to change the status quo on Aug 29-30. "Indian troops pre-empted this PLA activity on the Southern Bank of Pangong Tso Lake, undertook measures to strengthen our positions and thwart Chinese intentions to unilaterally change facts on the ground," the official statement by the Defence Ministry said. Moreover, the Army has confirmed that there has been no physical clash between Indian and Chinese troops near the southern bank of Pangong Tso in Eastern Ladakh, after which a Brigade Commander level Flag Meeting was held at Chushul.

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