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After a brief lull, induced by the September 10 five-point consensus reached in Moscow for disengagement and de-escalation, there were signs that the LAC situation remained tense and fluid, with China again blaming India for the Pangong Tso flare-up.
While he described the consensus reached by foreign minister S Jaishankar and his counterpart Wang Yi as an important step for easing the situation, China’s ambassador Sun Weidong seemed to raise the ante as he cited statements by Indian ministries and also Indian media reports to claim that Indian troops had violated the LAC and sought to change the status quo in border areas.
“Recently, the relevant Indian ministries had claimed in the statements that Indian troops “pre-empted” Chinese military activity on the South Bank of Pangong Tso Lake, which obviously revealed that there are (sic) illegal trespassing the LAC and status quo change in the border areas,” said Weidong in a statement, adding that some Indian media reports had quoted government sources to “disclose” that the Indian army fired shots on two different occasions.
The ambassador seemed to be responding to a statement by India on August 31 in which it had said that Indian troops had pre-empted a provocative PLA activity on the southern bank of Pangong Tso intended to unilaterally change facts on ground.
Like in its readout of the Jaishankar-Wang meeting, China called for moving back all troops and equipment that had “trespassed” the LAC. The fact that on this occasion China cited Indian assertion about “defensive military action” and extrapolated it to claim violation of LAC suggests that the situation at Pangong, where the Indian army has occupied some strategic heights, is not to China’s liking.
Sun, however, expressed confidence in the five-point consensus saying that even the public opinion in India seemed to suggest that both sides had demonstrated political will to resolve the border situation.
“Our two foreign ministers reached five-point consensus, which includes that the two sides should follow leaders’ consensus, ease tensions, maintain peace and tranquility in the border areas, continue diplomatic communication and expedite work to conclude new confidence building measures. It is an important step towards the right direction, and will provide political impetus to ease the border situation and promote the bilateral relations,” said Sun.
Sun further expressed hope that if the 2 sides earnestly implemented the consensus reached by the foreign ministers and adhered to the correct means of dialogue and negotiation, they would find a way to overcome the current difficulties.
“In this context, State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi reiterated in the meeting with EAM that the imperative is to immediately stop provocations such as firing and other dangerous actions that violate the commitments made by the two sides. The frontier troops must quickly disengage so that the situation may de-escalate,” he added.
Underlining China’s position, he said China supported enhanced dialogue between the frontier troops on both sides to solve specific issues, and that China will stay in touch with the Indian side through diplomatic and military channels.
Regarding the future development of ties, he said, the two foreign ministers agreed that as the situation eases, the two sides should expedite work to conclude new confidence building measures to maintain and enhance peace and tranquility in the border areas.
While he described the consensus reached by foreign minister S Jaishankar and his counterpart Wang Yi as an important step for easing the situation, China’s ambassador Sun Weidong seemed to raise the ante as he cited statements by Indian ministries and also Indian media reports to claim that Indian troops had violated the LAC and sought to change the status quo in border areas.
“Recently, the relevant Indian ministries had claimed in the statements that Indian troops “pre-empted” Chinese military activity on the South Bank of Pangong Tso Lake, which obviously revealed that there are (sic) illegal trespassing the LAC and status quo change in the border areas,” said Weidong in a statement, adding that some Indian media reports had quoted government sources to “disclose” that the Indian army fired shots on two different occasions.
The ambassador seemed to be responding to a statement by India on August 31 in which it had said that Indian troops had pre-empted a provocative PLA activity on the southern bank of Pangong Tso intended to unilaterally change facts on ground.
Like in its readout of the Jaishankar-Wang meeting, China called for moving back all troops and equipment that had “trespassed” the LAC. The fact that on this occasion China cited Indian assertion about “defensive military action” and extrapolated it to claim violation of LAC suggests that the situation at Pangong, where the Indian army has occupied some strategic heights, is not to China’s liking.
Sun, however, expressed confidence in the five-point consensus saying that even the public opinion in India seemed to suggest that both sides had demonstrated political will to resolve the border situation.
“Our two foreign ministers reached five-point consensus, which includes that the two sides should follow leaders’ consensus, ease tensions, maintain peace and tranquility in the border areas, continue diplomatic communication and expedite work to conclude new confidence building measures. It is an important step towards the right direction, and will provide political impetus to ease the border situation and promote the bilateral relations,” said Sun.
Sun further expressed hope that if the 2 sides earnestly implemented the consensus reached by the foreign ministers and adhered to the correct means of dialogue and negotiation, they would find a way to overcome the current difficulties.
“In this context, State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi reiterated in the meeting with EAM that the imperative is to immediately stop provocations such as firing and other dangerous actions that violate the commitments made by the two sides. The frontier troops must quickly disengage so that the situation may de-escalate,” he added.
Underlining China’s position, he said China supported enhanced dialogue between the frontier troops on both sides to solve specific issues, and that China will stay in touch with the Indian side through diplomatic and military channels.
Regarding the future development of ties, he said, the two foreign ministers agreed that as the situation eases, the two sides should expedite work to conclude new confidence building measures to maintain and enhance peace and tranquility in the border areas.
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