India, China Hold 36th WMCC Talks, Agree to Use Existing Channels to Avoid LAC Miscalculation

India and China met in New Delhi on August 6 for the 36th meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) on Border Affairs. They reviewed the situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and talked about new ways to improve how they manage the border.

The Ministry of External Affairs said both sides spoke openly. They agreed that keeping the peace along the border isn’t just important—it’s vital if they want their overall relationship to grow.

Sujit Ghosh, Joint Secretary for East Asia, led the Indian side. Hou Yanqi, Director General of the Boundary and Oceanic Affairs Department from China’s Foreign Ministry, headed the Chinese team.

Officials on both sides said they’d keep using existing diplomatic and military channels to tackle any ongoing disputes and avoid confusion along the LAC. That means using the WMCC, regular commander-level meetings, and other mechanisms they already have in place.

This meeting followed up on issues discussed in the 24th round of the Special Representatives’ Talks. Both sides dove into details about marking the border, improving border management, building new mechanisms, and handling cross-border topics.

India also pushed for a quick meeting of the Expert Level Mechanism on trans-border rivers and told Beijing how important it is to share technical information about upstream water projects.

This latest round of talks comes just after some new confidence-building steps, like bringing back the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra and restoring direct civil flights. One government spokesperson put it plainly: things are starting to move in a positive direction.

Both countries expect to build on this progress as they prepare for future talks about the boundary.