Beijing: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke Wednesday to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. The two leaders agreed to ‘cool down’ tensions on the ground ‘as soon as possible’. They also discussed ways to maintain peace and tranquility in the border area in accordance with the agreement reached between the two countries, an official statement said here.
The telephonic conversation between the two ministers came after 20 Indian Army personnel were killed Monday night. They were killed in clashes with Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh. This incidentally is the biggest military confrontation in over five decades. It has significantly escalated the already volatile border standoff between the two countries.
In a statement, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said the two sides agreed to deal ‘fairly’ with the serious events caused by the conflict. They also agreed to jointly abide by the consensus reached at the military-level meetings between the two sides. The two sides will, ‘cool down the situation on the ground as soon as possible’. They will also ‘maintain peace and tranquility in the border area’.
During the telephonic conversation, Jaishankar conveyed to Wang India’s protest in the strongest terms on the violent face-off. He said the unprecedented development will have ‘serious impact’ on bilateral ties. He asked the Chinese side to reassess its actions and take corrective steps.
“The Chinese side took pre-meditated and planned action that was directly responsible for the resulting violence and casualties. It reflected the intent to change the facts on ground in violation of all our agreements to not change the status quo,” Jaishankar told Wang.
Wang said the two sides should follow the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries. They should strengthen the communication and coordination on the proper handling of the border situation. This can be done through the existing channels so as to jointly maintain peace and tranquility in the border area.
India said Tuesday the violent face-off between the armies of India and China in eastern Ladakh was the result of an attempt by the Chinese side to unilaterally change the status quo in the region. The Ministry of External Affairs said both sides suffered casualties that could have been avoided. However for that the Chinese side should have followed the agreement decided on.
Wang emphasized that both China and India are emerging powers with a population of over one billion people. They are accelerating ‘our own development and revitalisation is our respective historical missions’. For this reason, mutual respect and mutual support is the right direction for the two sides. In the long-term interests of the two countries ‘mutual suspicion and mutual friction are evil paths’. It is contrary to the fundamental aspirations of the two peoples,” Wang said in the statement.
The Chinese foreign minister also alleged that on the evening of June 15, the Indian front-line frontier troops ‘blatantly broke the consensus’ reached at the military-level meeting between the two sides.
Once the situation in the Galwan Valley has calmed down, they ‘crossed the LAC again and deliberately provoked and violently attacked’ the officers and soldiers who negotiated on the spot, leading to fierce physical clashes, resulting in casualties, claimed Wang.
Wang demanded the Indian side to conduct a ‘thorough investigation’ on this, ‘severely punish those responsible’ for the incident.