Must stabilise ties: Jaishankar tells Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Laos
Jaishankar emphasised it is in the interest of both India and China to take urgent steps to stabilise the overall bilateral relationship
New Delhi: External affairs minister S Jaishankar focused on the early resolution of remaining issues on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in order to “stabilise and rebuild” India-China relations during a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on Thursday.
The two foreign ministers met on the margins of Asean-related meetings in Vientiane, the capital of Laos. The meeting gave the two ministers an opportunity to review the situation since their last meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Astana on July 4, the external affairs ministry said in a readout.
Jaishankar said in a post on X that he had continued ongoing discussions with Wang about the bilateral relationship. “The state of the border will necessarily be reflected on the state of our ties,” he said.
“Agreed on the need to give strong guidance to complete the disengagement process. Must ensure full respect for the LAC and past agreements,” he said, referring to the military standoff in the Ladakh sector of the LAC and outstanding friction points such as Depsang and Demchok.
Jaishankar emphasised it is in the interest of both India and China to take urgent steps to stabilise the overall bilateral relationship. His remarks came against the backdrop of the Chinese leadership’s repeated calls for the border issue to be placed in its “appropriate place” in the overall relationship while the two sides take forward ties in areas such as trade and investment.
“It is in our mutual interest to stabilise our ties. We should approach the immediate issues with a sense of purpose and urgency,” he said.
The external affairs ministry’s readout said the talks between Jaishankar and Wang “focused on finding an early resolution of the remaining issues along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) to stabilise and rebuild bilateral relations”.
The readout said the two ministers “agreed on the need to work with purpose and urgency to achieve complete disengagement at the earliest”.
It added, “Peace and tranquillity on the borders and respect for LAC are essential for normalcy in bilateral relations. Both sides must fully abide by relevant bilateral agreements, protocols, and understandings reached between the two Governments in the past.”
Jaishankar also “stressed the importance of the three mutuals – mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual sensitivity – to our ties”.
As discussed at the meeting in Astana, the two sides would hold an early meeting of the Working Mechanism on Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC) to take their discussions forward, the readout said.
Jaishankar and Wang also exchanged views on the global and regional situation.
The standoff on the LAC, which began in May 2020, and a brutal clash in Galwan Valley that killed 20 Indian soldiers and at least four Chinese troops have taken India-China relations to a six-decade low. Jaishankar has maintained that the bilateral relationship cannot be normalised without peace and tranquillity on the border.