The friction in eastern Ladakh is now over three years old. The Chinese army personnel and ammunition continue to be deployed at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) since 2020. India mirrored the move with its own deployment at the LAC. In Johannesburg, on the sidelines of a BRICS meeting, NSA Ajit Doval used strong words to convey a message to China - the situation has eroded the "strategic trust" and disrupted the political and public basis of the relationship as well. Where do India-China relations stand and where are they headed? What message does the upping of deployment send to Chinese President Xi Jinping, with just a little over a month left until world leaders congregate in India for the G20 summit?