China troops withdraw from India border as Xi visit ends

FE Team | Published: September 20, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

NEW DELHI, Sept 19 (AFP): Chinese troops have begun pulling back from the disputed border with India, sources said Friday, as President Xi Jinping wrapped up a rare visit to New Delhi overshadowed by the stand-off at the remote frontier.
The row over an alleged incursion by hundreds of Chinese troops into territory claimed by India has dominated Xi's visit, intended to reset ties between Asia's two superpowers after the election of a new Indian government this year.
The two countries have long been embroiled in a bitter dispute over their border, with both sides regularly accusing soldiers of crossing over into the other's territory.
As Xi arrived in India on Wednesday, reports said 1,000 Chinese soldiers had entered a disputed area in the mountainous northern Ladakh region, sparking a stand-off with Indian troops.
Analysts said the reported incursions were likely timed to fire a shot across the bows of India's new Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has signalled he will take a harder line on what he termed Chinese "expansionism".
On Friday, a local lawmaker said the troops had begun pulling back, confirming a report by the Press Trust of India news agency.
"The Chinese troops have started going back," the lawmaker told AFP, on condition of anonymity.
"The Indian soldiers are also retreating, but they will continue their vigil."
A source in the Indian paramilitary forces said the situation has "de-escalated" in Chumar sector although some Chinese soldiers were still present in Demchok area of southern Ladakh.