Up to China to Mend Ties with India: Jaishankar

IF Bureau

While addressing the 13^th All India Conference of China Studies, India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar minced no words about the severely strained relationship status between the two neighbours.

Speaking just over a week after Indian and Chinese troops engaged in another clash along their border in Naku La sector of Sikkim, Jaishankar said such incidents suggested Beijing was not keen on reducing the heavy buildup of its troops along the Line of Actual Control (LaC) in eastern Ladakh.

If anything, he added, China seemed more committed “to breach peace” in the region.

Pointing out that China’s provocative and intrusive military activities along many parts of its long border with India last year (which reached alarming proportions with the Galwan Valley incident that claimed the lives of 20 Indian soldiers) were squarely responsible for undermining its ties with India over the past few months, Jaishankar explained that it was impossible for bilateral relations to be normal with such tensions and clashes along the border.

He stated that the relationship between India and China had gone through many ups and downs over the past many decades, but their shared border had remained tranquil through it all. He also recalled that the last time there was any casualty from border clashes between India and China before last year was 45 years ago. This was back in 1975, when Chinese troops had trespassed into Indian territory at Tulung La in Arunachal Pradesh and ambushed an Assam Rifles patrolling team, killing four jawans.

However, the External Affairs Minister reasserted on the occasion that India shall remain uncompromising about its stance on the LaC in Ladakh and China’s attempts to change the traditional status quo there would never be taken lying down.

After nine months to the first instance of Indo-China border standoff last year and nine rounds of military commander-level talks (not to mention a few diplomatic ones) between India and China since then, tensions remain sky-high on many parts of their Himalayan borderline and trade is hitting fresh lows.

That unfortunate situation is unlikely to change, as Jaishankar rightly concluded, until China honours its agreements with India “both in letter and spirit”.

(with inputs from agencies)