Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

India to Chinese minister: Ease border tension first

INDIA said on Friday (25) ties with China could not be normal until their troops pulled back from each other on the disputed border, but Beijing struck a conciliatory note during a meeting of their foreign ministers in New Delhi.

Both nations have deployed thousands of troops on the high-altitude border since hand-to-hand fights killed 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers northern Himalayan region of Ladakh in June 2020. Talks between senior military officers have made little progress.


"I was very honest in my discussions with the Chinese foreign minister, especially in conveying our national sentiments," India's foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar told a news briefing after his three-hour meeting with Wang Yi.

"The frictions and tensions that arise from China's deployments since April 2020 cannot be reconciled with a normal relationship between the two neighbours."

In a statement, Wang said China and India should work together to promote peace and stability around the world.

"The two sides should ... put the differences on the boundary issue in an appropriate position in bilateral relations, and adhere to the correct development direction of bilateral relations," he said.

"China does not pursue the so-called "unipolar Asia" and respects India's traditional role in the region. The whole world will pay attention when China and India work hand in hand."

GettyImages 1239486599 Tibetan Youth Congress activists shout slogans as they protest during China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi visit to India, in New Delhi on March 25, 2022. (Photo by PRAKASH SINGH/AFP via Getty Images)

Jaishankar, a former ambassador to Beijing, said it was at China's request that India did not announce Wang's trip before his arrival in the capital late on Thursday (24).

Wang met India's national security adviser, Ajit Doval, who also pressed him for a de-escalation at the border.

It was not immediately clear if India offered to pull back its troops if China did.

Wang and Jaishankar also discussed their nations' approaches to tackling Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"Both of us agreed on the importance of an immediate ceasefire, as well as a return to diplomacy," Jaishankar said.

India and China each consider Russia a friend and have rejected Western calls for condemnation of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which Russia calls a "special military operation".

Wang, who visited Pakistan and Afghanistan earlier this week, is set to fly to the Himalayan nation of Nepal later on Friday during a whirlwind tour of South Asia, where China is trying to strengthen its influence.

Before his arrival, Wang drew a rebuke from India for remarks in Pakistan on disputed Kashmir, a Muslim-majority region each rules in part but claims in full, an issue on which China has generally backed its close ally, Pakistan.

(Reuters)

More For You

ve-day-getty

VE Day 80 street parties, picnics and community get togethers are being encouraged to take place across the country as part of the Great British Food Festival. (Photo: Getty Images)

Public invited to attend VE Day 80 procession and flypast

THE 80th anniversary of Victory in Europe (VE) Day will be marked with a military procession in London on May 5.

The event will include over 1,300 members of the Armed Forces, youth groups, and uniformed services marching from Parliament Square to Buckingham Palace.

Keep ReadingShow less
Knife crimes

Knife-enabled crimes include cases where a blade or sharp instrument was used to injure or threaten, including where the weapon was not actually seen.

Getty Images/iStockphoto

Knife crime in London accounts for a third of national total: ONS

KNIFE-RELATED crime in London made up almost a third of all such offences recorded in England and Wales in 2024, with the Metropolitan Police logging 16,789 incidents, according to figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Thursday.

This amounts to one offence every 30 minutes in the capital and represents 31 per cent of the 54,587 knife-enabled crimes reported across England and Wales last year. The total number marks a two per cent rise from 53,413 offences in 2023.

Keep ReadingShow less
Starmer and Modi

Starmer and Modi shake hands during a bilateral meeting in the sidelines of the G20 summit at the Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Brazil, on November 18, 2024.

Getty Images

Starmer calls Modi over Kashmir attack; expresses condolences

PRIME MINISER Keir Starmer spoke to Indian prime minister Narendra Modi on Friday morning following the deadly attack in Kashmir’s Pahalgam region that killed 26 people on Tuesday.

According to a readout from 10 Downing Street, Starmer said he was horrified by the devastating terrorist attack and expressed deep condolences on behalf of the British people to those affected, their loved ones, and the people of India. The two leaders agreed to stay in touch.

Keep ReadingShow less
 Post Office Horizon

A Post Office van parked outside the venue for the Post Office Horizon IT inquiry at Aldwych House on January 11, 2024 in London, England. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Post Office spent £600m to keep Horizon despite plans to replace it: Report

THE POST OFFICE has spent more than £600 million of public funds to continue using the Horizon IT system, according to a news report.

Despite deciding over a decade ago to move away from the software, the original 1999 contract with Fujitsu prevented the Post Office from doing so, as it did not own the core software code, a BBC investigation shows.

Keep ReadingShow less
Pahalgam attack: Prayer meet held at Indian mission in London

The prayer meet was led by Indian High Commissioner to the UK Vikram Doraiswami

Pahalgam attack: Prayer meet held at Indian mission in London

Mahesh Liloriya

A PRAYER meet was held at the Gandhi Hall in the High Commission of India in London on Thursday (24) to pay respects to the victims of the Pahalgam terrorist attack.

Chants of ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ rang out at the event which was led by Indian High Commissioner to the UK Vikram Doraiswami.

Keep ReadingShow less