It is for India and China to talk and find a solution to the border issue, says EAM Jaishankar
| 2024-07-30
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar speaks at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo on July 29, 2024. (X/@DrSJaishankar)
If countries have agreements, countries should abide by the agreements, asserts EAM Jaishankar
It is for both India and China to talk and find a solution to the border issue, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said, maintaining that they were not looking to other countries to sort out the issue between them. He has also reiterated that countries should abide by past agreements, a reference to China's attempts to change the status quo along its borders with India.
Responding to a question about the border tension between India and China during a media interaction at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo on Monday (July 29, 2024), EAM Jaishankar said, "We have a problem, an issue between India and China. It is for the two of us to talk it over and find a way".
He went on to explain that other countries would have an interest in the matter "because we are two big countries and the state of the relationship has an impact on the rest of the world. But we are not looking to other countries to sort out the issue between India and China".
EAM Jaishankar printed out that he had met China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi twice this month. “It is an issue between the two of us and we need to settle it between us...if countries have agreements, countries should abide by the agreements," he asserted.
Meeting the Chinese Foreign Minister on the sidelines of the ASEAN-related Foreign Ministers' Meetings in Vientiane, Laos, on July 25, 2024, EAM Jaishankar called for respect for the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and earlier agreements.
The state of the border will be reflected on the state of India-China ties, EAM Jaishankar noted as he pointed out that immediate issues must be approached with a sense of purpose and urgency. During their talks, the two Ministers agreed on the need to give strong guidance to complete the disengagement process along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh.
In June 2020, a tense standoff between Indian and Chinese troops in Eastern Ladakh had led to a violent face-off in the Galwan Valley. Twenty Indian soldiers had lost their lives. A large number of Chinese troops were also killed though China has never officially confirmed the actual number of deaths.
Multiple rounds of talks at the military and diplomatic levels since then have led to a disengagement at several places. The last few rounds of Corps Commander-level talks have, however, seen no announcement of any fresh disengagement along the remaining friction points along LAC in the Western Sector in the Eastern Ladakh region.
Quad Foreign Ministers' Strong Message to China
The Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting, held in Tokyo earlier in the day, sent out a strong message to China in a joint statement reaffirming their conviction that international law, including respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity and the maintenance of peace, safety, security and stability in the maritime domain underpin the development and prosperity of the Indo Pacific.
"We emphasise the importance of adherence to international law, particularly as reflected in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), to address challenges to the global maritime rules-based order, including with respect to maritime claims, and in the South and East China Seas," the statement read
Expressing their serious concern about the situation in the East and South China Seas, the Quad Foreign Ministers reiterated their strong opposition to any unilateral actions that seek to change the status quo by force or coercion.
"We continue to express our serious concern about the militarisation of disputed features, and coercive and intimidating manoeuvres in the South China Sea. We also express our serious concern about the dangerous use of Coast Guard and Maritime Militia vessels, the increasing use of various kinds of dangerous manoeuvres, and efforts to disrupt other countries’ offshore resource exploitation activities.
Responding to a question about the border tension between India and China during a media interaction at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo on Monday (July 29, 2024), EAM Jaishankar said, "We have a problem, an issue between India and China. It is for the two of us to talk it over and find a way".
He went on to explain that other countries would have an interest in the matter "because we are two big countries and the state of the relationship has an impact on the rest of the world. But we are not looking to other countries to sort out the issue between India and China".
EAM Jaishankar printed out that he had met China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi twice this month. “It is an issue between the two of us and we need to settle it between us...if countries have agreements, countries should abide by the agreements," he asserted.
Meeting the Chinese Foreign Minister on the sidelines of the ASEAN-related Foreign Ministers' Meetings in Vientiane, Laos, on July 25, 2024, EAM Jaishankar called for respect for the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and earlier agreements.
The state of the border will be reflected on the state of India-China ties, EAM Jaishankar noted as he pointed out that immediate issues must be approached with a sense of purpose and urgency. During their talks, the two Ministers agreed on the need to give strong guidance to complete the disengagement process along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh.
In June 2020, a tense standoff between Indian and Chinese troops in Eastern Ladakh had led to a violent face-off in the Galwan Valley. Twenty Indian soldiers had lost their lives. A large number of Chinese troops were also killed though China has never officially confirmed the actual number of deaths.
Multiple rounds of talks at the military and diplomatic levels since then have led to a disengagement at several places. The last few rounds of Corps Commander-level talks have, however, seen no announcement of any fresh disengagement along the remaining friction points along LAC in the Western Sector in the Eastern Ladakh region.
Quad Foreign Ministers' Strong Message to China
The Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting, held in Tokyo earlier in the day, sent out a strong message to China in a joint statement reaffirming their conviction that international law, including respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity and the maintenance of peace, safety, security and stability in the maritime domain underpin the development and prosperity of the Indo Pacific.
"We emphasise the importance of adherence to international law, particularly as reflected in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), to address challenges to the global maritime rules-based order, including with respect to maritime claims, and in the South and East China Seas," the statement read
Expressing their serious concern about the situation in the East and South China Seas, the Quad Foreign Ministers reiterated their strong opposition to any unilateral actions that seek to change the status quo by force or coercion.
"We continue to express our serious concern about the militarisation of disputed features, and coercive and intimidating manoeuvres in the South China Sea. We also express our serious concern about the dangerous use of Coast Guard and Maritime Militia vessels, the increasing use of various kinds of dangerous manoeuvres, and efforts to disrupt other countries’ offshore resource exploitation activities.
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