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LAC violations have eroded bilateral ties: India to China
Singh told Li that all issues at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) needed to be resolved in accordance with existing bilateral agreements and commitments, a defence ministry statement said
NEW DELHI: Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday raised the issue of the lingering border row with China in eastern Ladakh with his Chinese counterpart General Li Shangfu while stressing that the violation of existing agreements had eroded bilateral relations, and the development of India-China ties was based on the prevalence of peace and tranquillity at the borders.
Singh told Li that all issues at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) needed to be resolved in accordance with existing bilateral agreements and commitments, a defence ministry statement said. The two ministers held a bilateral meeting on the eve of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) defence ministers’ meeting on Friday.
“The Raksha Mantri categorically conveyed that development of relations between India and China is premised on prevalence of peace and tranquillity at the borders,” the statement said. “He reiterated that violation of existing agreements has eroded the entire basis of bilateral relations and disengagement at the border will logically be followed with de-escalation.”
The two ministers had frank discussions on developments in the India-China border areas as well as bilateral relations, the statement added.
Photos of Singh’s meetings released by the defence ministry showed the Indian defence minister shaking hands with his counterparts from Iran, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. However, the photo of Singh’s meeting with his Chinese counterpart did not show them shaking hands, but only seated across the table. Singh and Li did not shake hands when they met for the bilateral talks, said an official familiar with the matter.
The meeting took place days after the India Army and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) held the 18th round of military talks to ease tensions along LAC in eastern Ladakh.
What is stated (by Singh) is the standard Indian position that the ongoing standoff has impacted bilateral relations which can only improve if the PLA disengages and then pulls back additional forces, said former Northern Army commander Lieutenant General DS Hooda (retd).
“To me this indicates that both sides have probably reiterated their respective positions and there is no substantive move forward. However, it is good that high level political contacts are taking place because ultimately the resolution will come at the political level,” Hooda added.
Singh told his Chinese counterpart that military cooperation between the two countries can progress only if peace and tranquility is established at the border, officials familiar with the talks said, asking not to be named. At the meeting, Singh also said that after disengagement of frontline troops, there should be movement towards de-escalation and expressed hope for a positive response, the officials said.
Singh told Li that India wants to improve relations with China, but that can happen only after peace and tranquillity are restored at the border, they added.
At the latest round of India-China corps commander level talks on April 23, the two sides agreed to maintain security and stability along LAC, stay in close contact and continue dialogue through military and diplomatic channels, and work out a mutually acceptable resolution of the remaining issues. The talks, however, did not yield an immediate breakthrough.
Li’s visit to India is the first visit by a Chinese defence minister after the June 2020 Galwan clash that derailed bilateral ties. Twenty Indian soldiers killed in the seven-hour deadly conflict near Patrolling Point 14 in Galwan Valley. According to India’s assessment, PLA’s casualties were twice as many as Indian Army’s though Beijing officially claimed that only four Chinese soldiers were killed.
The two sides have been locked in a border row in eastern Ladakh for almost three years.
Despite four rounds of disengagement from Galwan Valley, Pangong Tso, Gogra (PP-17A) and Hot Springs (PP-15), the Indian and Chinese armies still have more than 60,000 troops each and advanced weaponry deployed in the Ladakh theatre. Problems at Depsang in Daulet Beg Oldi sector and Charding Nullah Junction (CNJ) in Demchok sector are still on the negotiating table.
On April 19, Singh expressed confidence in the Indian Army to handle any contingency along the country’s border with China even as he said talks would continue for peaceful resolution of the lingering row in the Ladakh sector, and disengagement and de-escalation were the best way forward.
On Thursday, Singh also held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Iran, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. SCO has eight member states: India, China, Russia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Iran and Belarus are taking part in the meeting as observer countries.
Singh and his Iranian counterpart Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Gharaei Ashtiani reviewed bilateral defence cooperation, and exchanged views on regional security issues, including peace and stability in Afghanistan, the ministry said in another statement.
“The two ministers discussed the development of the International North South Transport corridor (a 7,200-km multi-mode route spanning 13 countries) to ease logistics problems to Afghanistan and other countries in Central Asia,” it added.
India is set to host the SCO foreign ministers’ meeting in May. These meetings will culminate in the SCO Summit to be held in July, the first time India will host the event since joining the grouping in 2017.
