China trims troop deployment along LAC in 2025, but 10 combined arms brigades remain: MoD report
China significantly reduced the deployment of its People's Liberation Army (PLA) along India's northern borders during 2025, but continued to maintain 10 combined arms brigade-sized formations in areas along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and in its traditional training areas, according to the Defence Ministry's annual report for 2025-26, released on Sunday.
The report stated that the Indian Army's deployment across all sectors along the LAC remained robust, well poised and prepared to deal with any emerging contingency.
On India-China engagements, the Ministry said sustained political, diplomatic and military interactions between the two countries had facilitated positive developments along the northern borders and contributed to stability.
Dialogue mechanisms resume
The year 2025 saw the resumption of key dialogue mechanisms, including the 33rd and 34th meetings of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC), held in March and July respectively. The Special Representatives (SR) dialogue on the India-China boundary question also resumed, with rounds held in December 2024 and August 2025.
The Ministry said the improvement in bilateral relations was further reinforced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin in August 2025.
Military-to-military engagement followed a similar trajectory, with the 23rd Corps Commander-level meeting held in eastern Ladakh on October 25 and 26, 2025. The Ministry described the meeting as part of the constructive discourse between the two sides.
At the ground level, border personnel meetings between the Indian Army and the PLA continued across all sectors. The report said these engagements were conducted in a cordial and friendly environment to address issues of concern.
Gradual stabilisation after 2020 standoff
The assessment comes against the backdrop of the prolonged military standoff along the LAC since 2020, and indicates a gradual stabilisation following sustained diplomatic and military-level engagements. The two sides completed disengagement at the last of the identified friction points in eastern Ladakh in 2024, after which patrolling arrangements and buffer zones became the focus of discussion.
The LAC, however, remains undemarcated, and both countries continue to hold differing perceptions of the alignment of the boundary in several sectors. Talks on delimitation, which would require a far longer process than disengagement, are still at an early stage. A reduction in troop levels therefore does not by itself amount to a resolution of the underlying dispute, and the Ministry's report does not disclose sector-wise figures.
First Corps Commander-level meeting in Eastern Sector
On September 6, amid continuing concerns over conflicting territorial claims and military build-up along the LAC, the Indian and Chinese armies held their first Corps Commander-level meeting in the Eastern Sector. The meeting marked a significant expansion of the military dialogue mechanism beyond the Ladakh sector.
It was held at the Vacha-Damai border personnel meeting point in Arunachal Pradesh, amid reports of tension in the Taksing area of Upper Subansiri district.
India has consistently maintained that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of the country, and that the boundary question must be settled through peaceful negotiation on the basis of mutual respect and the agreements signed between the two sides.
What the latest report signals is a continuation of structured engagement rather than a settlement. The scale of forces retained by both armies along the LAC, and the pace of the ongoing diplomatic processes, will determine whether the improvement described in the report is sustained in the year ahead.
