China Calls for Sound and Stable Relations with India Amidst Border Tensions
New Delhi: Responding to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks earlier on Wednesday, China on Thursday said that “sound and stable ties” serve the common interests of both nations. Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning was quoted in news agency reports from Beijing as saying at a media briefing: “China has noted the remarks by the Prime Minister. We believe that sound and stable China-India relations serve the common interests of both sides and are conducive to peace and development of the region and beyond.” She further said that the boundary question “does not represent the entirety of India-China relations (and that) it should be placed appropriately in bilateral relations and managed properly”.
She added the two sides are in close communication through diplomatic and military channels. “We hope India will work in the same direction with China, handle bilateral relations from strategic heights and long-term perspective, enhance mutual trust, stick to dialogue and cooperation, handle differences properly and put bilateral relations forward on a sound and stable track,” she was quoted as saying.
Mr Modi had earlier Wednesday told America’s Newsweek magazine: “For India, the relationship with China is important and significant. It is my belief that we need to urgently address the prolonged situation on our borders so that the abnormality in our bilateral interactions can be put behind us. Stable and peaceful relations between India and China are important for not just our two countries, but the entire region and world. I hope and believe that through positive and constructive bilateral engagement at the diplomatic and military levels, we will be able to restore and sustain peace and tranquility in our borders.” He had also said the four-nation Quad was “not aimed against any country”.
This comes even as Chinese troops have yet to pull back from all the friction points in the Ladakh sector to the north where they had amassed four years ago in violation of border pacts with India. New Dehi has already made it clear to Beijing that ties between the two Asian giants cannot be normal until Chinese troops pull back and the status quo that existed in the spring of 2020 is restored. Last month, the two sides had the "29th meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation & Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC)" in Beijing, at which no breakthrough was reported even after several rounds of talks both at the military and diplomatic level.
Earlier this month, in another round of a war of words, India had “firmly rejected China’s persistent senseless attempts to rename places in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh” and had said that “assigning invented names will not alter the reality that Arunachal Pradesh is, has been, and will always be an integral and inalienable part of India”.