NEW DELHI: Foreign minister S Jaishankar reiterated India’s call for an early resolution of all outstanding issues along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh in a meeting on Thursday with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.
Recalling the disengagement already carried out in some friction areas, according to an Indian readout, Jaishankar underlined the need to sustain the “momentum” to complete disengagement from all remaining areas to restore peace and tranquility in the border areas.
The two leaders met on the sidelines of the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting in Bali. This was their first meeting since Wang’s visit to India in March, the first high-level bilateral visit by either side after the Galwan clashes in 2020. Significantly, Wang appreciated India’s support during China’s Brics chairship this year and assured China’s support for India’s upcoming G20 and SCO presidency.
“Bilateral relations have generally shown a momentum of recovery. China and India share common interests and similar reasonable demands,” said China in a statement. In its readout of what Jaishankar’s said, China highlighted that India will continue to adhere to strategic independence and an independent position in international affairs.
Reacting to a question on the meeting and the fact that Jaishankar raised the LAC issue, the Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said the China-India border was generally stable.
“The two sides agreed to properly resolve the issues related to the western sector of the China-India border in accordance with the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries and the agreements signed by the two sides,” he said.
Jaishankar also reaffirmed the importance of fully abiding by bilateral agreements and protocols, and the understandings reached between the two ministers during their previous talks.
“In this regard, both ministers affirmed that military and diplomatic officials of the two sides should continue maintaining regular contact and looked forward to the next round of senior commanders’ meeting at an early date,” said the government in a statement, adding Jaishankar also reiterated that India-China relationship is best served by observing the three mutuals — mutual respect, mutual sensitivity and mutual interests.
The two ministers also discussed regional and global developments including, according to sources, the situation in Ukraine.
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