Disengagement over, ties with China improving: EAM

S JAISHANKAR'S STATEMENT IN LOK SABHA

- SHUBHAJIT ROY, DIVYA A & DEEPTIMAN TIWARY

IN HIS FIRST statement to Parliament since India and China reached an agreement in October on patrolling arrangements in the Depsang Plains and Demchok - two friction points along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) - External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Tuesday that the "conclusion of disengagement" has set Delhi-Beijing ties "in the direction of some improvement".

"Recent developments that reflect our continuous diplomatic engagement... have set our ties in the direction of some improvement," Jaishankar said in a detailed statement in the Lok Sabha.

While "disengagement has now been achieved in full in Eastern Ladakh through a step-by-step process", he said "the next priority will be to consider de-escalation, that would address the massing of troops along the LAC". In this context, he said the "Special Representatives and Foreign Secretary-level mechanisms will be convening soon".