There was also a gift exchange between the two armies at Wacha in Arunachal Pradesh
Two days after the Modi-Xi informal summit was held in Wuhan, China, the Indian Army and Chinese PLA held an immediate confidence building measure today. A special Border Personnel Meeting was held at the Chushul-Moldo point in eastern Ladakh, defence ministry sources said.
The development comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping issued “strategic guidance” to their militaries last week to build trust to avoid future Doklam like stand-offs and improve effectiveness in managing border affairs.
There was also a gift exchange between the two armies at Wacha in Arunachal Pradesh, officials added.
“A Special Border Personnel Meeting was held on the occasion of Labour Day at Chusul-Moldo Meeting Point on Chinese Side,” a top official said.
“Troops and families of both armies were part of the celebrations, which were conducted in an atmosphere of bonhomie and friendship,” the official added.
Such meetings indicate the “upward trend” of relations between the two countries and building of trust between the two armies deployed along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
Currently, such Border Personnel Meetings (BPMs) are held at five established locations along the LAC- Daulat Beg Oldie and Chushul in Ladakh, Bum La and Kibithu in Arunachal Pradesh, and Nathu La in Sikkim. BPMs are ceremonial meetings which are held between the Indian Army and Chinese PLA on auspicious occasions for the two nations such as Independence Day, Republic Day and PLA Day (August 1) every year. During the meetings, the two armies engage in discussions, sports and group activities, which are means to ensure peace at the LAC and harmony between each other.
At the Modi-Xi summit which was held for two days starting April 27, the two leaders had underscored the importance of maintaining peace and tranquillity in all areas of the India-China border region in the larger interest of the overall development of bilateral relations.
The two leaders further directed their militaries to implement various confidence-building measures agreed between the two sides, including the principle of mutual and equal security, and strengthen existing institutional arrangements and information-sharing mechanisms to prevent incidents in border regions.