Sikkim row: No room for negotiations, situation could get worse, says China

Beijing: Chinese state media on Saturday said the standoff between India and China in Dokalam area in Sikkim could worsen if India does not withdraw its troops from the region, adding that there was “no room for negotiations” on the dispute.

“China has made it clear that there is no room for negotiations on this incident, and India must withdraw its border-crossing troops from Dokalam. For China, border line is the bottom line,” China’s official press agency Xinhua said in a commentary, according to reports.

“India has repeatedly ignored China's call for pulling its border-crossing troops from Dokalam area back to its own territory. However, turning a deaf ear to China will but worsen the month-long standoff and put itself further into embarrassment,” it added.

China and India have been engaged in the standoff in the Dokalam area near the Bhutan tri-junction for the past one month after a Chinese Army's construction party attempted to build a road. Indian troops stopped road construction by Chinese soldiers on June 16.

India had expressed concern over the road construction, apprehending that it may allow Chinese troops to cut India's access to its north-eastern states.

China has time and again reiterated its demand for “unconditional” withdrawal of Indian troops from Dokalam to resolve the month-long face-off.

The commentary, however, took note of Indian Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar’s remark in Singapore as a “positive sign”.

“As an old Chinese saying goes, peace is most precious. It has been noticed that Indian Foreign Secretary Subrahmanyam Jaishankar recently has made positive remarks in Singapore, saying that ‘India and China should not let differences become disputes’,” it said.

Dokalam is controlled by India, but claimed by Bhutan. China also claims it as part of its Donglang region. China and Bhutan are engaged in talks over the resolution of the dispute in the area. India argues that since it is a tri-junction involving the three countries, it also has a say in the issue, specially in the backdrop of 2012 agreement between special representatives of the two countries, that have till now held 19 rounds of talks.

Bhutan has no diplomatic ties with China. As a close friend and neighbour, Bhutan enjoys diplomatic and military support from India.