India and China discuss border issues and efforts to stabilize ties

Indian National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi discussed bilateral ties on the sidelines of the BRICS NSAs meeting in Johannesburg on Monday. The officials discussed the situation on the Himalayan border.

The Indian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday that the NSA conveyed that the situation along the Line of Contact in the Western Sector of the India-China border since 2020 has eroded strategic trust and the public and political basis of the relationship. 

“During the meeting, NSA emphasised the importance of continuing efforts to fully resolve the situation and restore peace and tranquility in the border areas, so as to remove impediments to normalcy in bilateral relations. The two sides agreed that the India-China bilateral relationship is significant not only for the two countries but also for the region and world,” the ministry said.

Wang called for concrete policies to be implemented to stabilize Chinese-Indian relations, Chinese news agency Xinhua reported. He added that both sides should enhance strategic mutual trust, focus on consensus and cooperation, overcome obstacles, and bring bilateral relations back to sound and stable development as soon as possible. 

Wang also stressed that China will never seek hegemony, and stands ready to work with developing countries, including India, to support multilateralism and the democratization of international relations, and promote a more just and equitable development of the international order.

The meeting came days after External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Wang in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, and discussed issues of peace and tranquility in the border areas. 

India has been locked in a border conflict with China for more than three years, following skirmishes in the Galwan valley in the eastern Ladakh in June 2020, which led to the deaths of at least 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers. New Delhi has maintained that bilateral relations with Beijing cannot be normalized without restoring peace in the border areas.

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