India-China Political Parameters and Guiding Principles Agreement

The 2005 Agreement on Political Parameters and Guiding Principles establishes the political and substantive principles India and China must follow while negotiating a boundary settlement. Signed on 11 April 2005, it does not itself determine the boundary; it guides the agreed framework and the subsequent delineation and demarcation process.

Nature of the settlement

• The settlement must be fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable, and reached through peaceful and friendly consultations on an equal footing.
• It must be a package settlement covering all sectors of the India-China boundary, rather than a settlement confined to an individual sector.
• Neither side may use or threaten to use force against the other, and the final settlement must not prejudice the due interests of either side.

Principles for determining the boundary

The boundary question must be approached from the political perspective of the overall bilateral relationship.

• The settlement must consider each side's strategic and reasonable interests and uphold mutual and equal security.
• Negotiators must consider historical evidence, national sentiments, practical difficulties, mutual concerns and sensitivities, and the actual conditions in border areas.
• The boundary should follow mutually agreed, well-defined and easily identifiable natural geographical features.
• The settlement must safeguard the due interests of settled populations in border areas.

Process and interim obligations

The Special Representatives must continue consultations to develop an agreed framework. Within that framework, boundary delineation and demarcation are to employ modern cartographic and surveying practices, including joint surveys.

• Pending a final settlement, both sides must strictly respect and observe the Line of Actual Control and jointly maintain peace and tranquillity in the border areas.
• The agreement distinguishes interim management of the Line of Actual Control from the eventual settlement, delineation and demarcation of the international boundary.