China ready to "cool down" situation along border with India

Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang said the two neighbors must embark on a new path of harmonious coexistence, peaceful development and common recovery.

Trung Quoc san sang Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar. (Source: PTI)

In the first sign of a possible rethink on easing tensions in Eastern Ladakh , China has expressed its willingness to “de-escalate” the situation along its shared border with India.

Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang was quoted as saying during talks with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Foreign Ministers' Meeting on the afternoon of May 4 that "the two sides need to continue to implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, consolidate the achievements made, strictly abide by relevant agreements, and work together to continue to ease and cool down the border situation, and maintain lasting peace and stability in the border areas."

For his part, External Affairs Minister Jaishankar said his discussions with Qin focused on the SCO summits (on July 4) and the G20 summits (in September) that India will host, to which Chinese President Xi Jinping has been invited.

According to Xinhua news agency, Foreign Minister Qin Gang said China supports India in successfully hosting the SCO summit.

He added that as the current chair, India will demonstrate the spirit of solidarity and cooperation and play an active role in making the summit a success.

Along with his statement on the border, Qin laid out the mechanism for restoring relations and shared an expanded vision of what India and China can do in the region and beyond.

China is willing to conduct bilateral consultations and exchanges with India, strengthen dialogue and cooperation within the multilateral framework, and deepen coordination and cooperation on international and regional issues, he said.

Besides, Mr. Qin Gang added that the two neighboring countries must embark on a new path of harmonious coexistence, peaceful development and common recovery, contributing to each side's national rejuvenation and bringing stability and positive energy to world peace and development.

India and China have been locked in a military standoff in Eastern Ladakh since May 2020 after China intruded across the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

India insists that China must restore the status quo ante of May 2020 before normalizing relations.

So far, China has insisted that the border situation must be kept separate from the overall normalization process - a view that India has repeatedly rejected./.

(Vietnam+)

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