India and China agree to keep diplomatic and military channels open on LAC

India and China met in New Delhi on 6 August for the 36th session of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India‑China Border Affairs (WMCC). The Indian delegation was led by Sujit Ghosh, Joint Secretary (East Asia) at the Ministry of External Affairs, while China was represented by Hou Yanqi, Director General of the Boundary and Oceanic Affairs Department.

Both sides held “frank” discussions on boundary delimitation, border management, institutional mechanisms and trans‑border cooperation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). They reiterated the need to maintain peace and tranquillity, agreed to continue using existing diplomatic and military channels – including WMCC meetings, local commander‑level talks and other agreed mechanisms – to resolve pending issues and avoid misunderstandings. India also urged an early convening of the Expert Level Mechanism on trans‑border rivers and highlighted the sharing of technical information on upstream projects. Recent confidence‑building steps such as the resumption of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra and restored civil‑aviation links were noted.