India, China agree to ‘properly handle’ border issues

• Vivek Mishra
• 04 July, 2024

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By: Vivek Mishra

India’s foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar met his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on Thursday in Kazakhstan. The two agreed to increase talks to resolve border issues, according to a statement from New Delhi.

India and China share a long Himalayan border that is poorly marked. Relations have been strained since a military standoff in July 2020 when 20 Indian soldiers and four Chinese troops were killed.

Jaishankar and Wang met on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Astana. They agreed that the prolonged situation in the border areas is not in the interest of either side.

They decided to enhance meetings between their diplomatic and military officials to resolve the remaining issues as soon as possible, the Indian foreign ministry said.

China and India should handle their differences properly and ensure relations advance on a stable track, a Chinese foreign ministry statement quoted Wang as saying.

“We must maintain a positive mindset, properly handle and control the situation in the border areas, and actively resume normal exchanges,” Wang said.

Indian prime minister Narendra Modi said in April that the two countries should urgently address the prolonged situation on their border. Both countries have fortified positions and deployed extra troops and equipment along the border since 2020. The two nations have had uneasy relations since a border war in 1962.

Jaishankar reaffirmed the importance of fully abiding by bilateral agreements, protocols, and understandings reached between the two governments in the past, according to New Delhi’s statement.

The two countries have previously agreed to maintain dialogue through military and diplomatic channels.

(Reuters)