India-China standoff: US encourages dialogue to reduce tension

China and India have been engaged in a standoff in the Dokalam area in the Sikkim sector.

The US said on Tuesday it would encourage India and China to engage in a direct dialogue to reduce tension between them in the Sikkim sector.

A man walks inside a conference room used for meetings between military commanders of China and India, at the Indian side of the Indo-China border at Bumla, Arunachal Pradesh, November 11, 2009. (Reuters File Photo)

“We encourage India and China to engage in a direct dialogue aimed at reducing tensions,” a State Department official told PTI.

Responding to questions on the India-China border standoff, the official refrained from saying anything else.

“We refer you to the governments of India and China for further information,” the official said.

China and India have been engaged in a standoff in the Dokalam area in the Sikkim sector, where Indian troops stopped road construction by Chinese soldiers on June 16.

Doka La is the Indian name for the region which Bhutan recognises as Dokalam, while China claims it as part of its Donglang region.

Of the 3,488-km-long India-China border from Jammu and Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh, a 220-km section falls in Sikkim.