New Delhi:

India is “entirely” responsible for the escalating border stand-off in Ladakh, the Chinese government claimed Saturday morning in a sharply-worded statement, hours after a high-level meeting in Moscow between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his counterpart, Defence Minister Wei Fenghi.

The statement also warned India that China would not lose “an inch of its territory” and that its forces were “determined, capable and confident” of defending “national sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

“Causes and truth of the current tension on the China-India border are clear, and the responsibility entirely lies with India. China cannot lose an inch of its territory, and its armed forces are fully determined, capable and confident in safeguarding national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the statement said.

The statement comes amid renewed tension between India and China over what the government called new attempts by Beijing to change the status quo in certain areas in eastern Ladakh.

Rajnath Singh met his Chinese counterpart on the sidelines of a three-day summit, in the first high-level contact of its kind since the border stand-off erupted in May.

In a pointed message before the meeting, Mr Singh said peace and security in the region demanded a climate of trust, non-aggression, peaceful resolution of differences and respect for international rules.