NEW DELHI: India and China have completed pulling back their troops from two face-off points on their disputed Himalayan frontier as planned, an Indian defence official said on Wednesday.

The nuclear-armed neighbours reached a deal last week on patrolling the frontier in Ladakh to end a four-year military standoff, paving the way for improved bilateral political and business ties.

The disengagement, which began last week, has been completed and verification of the process is in progress, the Indian official said.

Soldiers will exchange sweets in a goodwill gesture on Thursday and will begin their patrols of the frontier soon after commanders on the ground finalise the modalities, he added. There was no immediate comment from Beijing on the troop pull-back.

The mostly undemarcated border of about 4,000 km, which runs along the Himalayas, has been a source of tension between the world’s two most populous nations for decades and led to a brief but bloody war in 1962.

Four years ago, 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers were killed during border clashes.

Published in Dawn, October 31st, 2024