China confirmed on Tuesday that it has reached an agreement with India to resolve their longstanding border conflict in the Himalayan region. This announcement came shortly after New Delhi stated that both nations had agreed to regulate military patrols along their shared frontier.
The statement, however, did not clarify whether the agreement applies to the entire border or only specific areas where tensions have escalated since 2020.
Relations between the two nuclear-armed neighbors have been tense since a deadly clash in 2020 in the Ladakh region, which resulted in the deaths of 20 Indian and 4 Chinese soldiers. In the aftermath, both sides withdrew large numbers of troops and agreed to suspend patrols near the Line of Actual Control, an unofficial boundary stretching roughly 3,488 km (2,167 miles) between the two countries.
The disputed border runs from Ladakh in the west to Arunachal Pradesh in the east, which China claims as part of its Tibet region. In 1962, the two countries fought a brief war over the border, with China retaining control over the Aksai Chin area, a vital corridor linking Tibet to western China.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian noted that both nations have maintained “close communication through diplomatic and military channels” and that “a solution has been reached, which China views positively.”
