IFS officer Pradeep Rawat India's next Ambassador to China

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New Delhi, Dec 20 (IANS) Indian Foreign Service officer of the 1990 batch Pradeep Kumar Rawat was appointed India's next Ambassador to China on Monday, aimed at resolving the border dispute with that country. Rawat is currently India's envoy to the Netherlands. He will succeed Vikram Misri.

"He is expected to take up the assignment shortly," the Ministry of External Affairs said in a brief statement. Rawat's appointment comes in the midst of the lingering eastern Ladakh border standoff.

He speaks fluent Mandarin and had earlier served in Hong Kong and Beijing. The biggest challenge ahead of posting would be the border dispute India is having with China.

India and China have been engaged in the dispute for the last 20 months. The last Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC) meeting took place in November this year.

After the meeting, both the countries agreed on the need to find an early resolution to the remaining disputes along the Line of Actual Control in Eastern Ladakh while fully abiding by bilateral agreements and protocols so as to restore peace and tranquility.

"The two sides also agreed that both should in the interim also continue to ensure a stable ground situation and avoid any untoward incident," the external affairs ministry had said.

In the meantime, both the countries have made enhanced deployment even during the winter to thwart any threat.

Indian troops are deployed at a height of around 17,000 feet along the border and all logistics are in place. The force is ready to sustain the enhanced troop deployment in the harsh winter at friction points where temperatures will soon start dipping beyond minus 20 degrees.

--IANS

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