New Delhi: Asserting that it’s not the India of 1962 which could be arm-twisted, Defence minister Rajnath Singh said on Saturday that talks are being held with China at military and diplomatic levels to resolve stand-off between the armies of two countries in Ladakh sector.
To a question whether anyone can arm twist India now like in 1962 (China-India war), the defence minister said: “No one can even think of that (of arm twisting India). India has a capable and decisive leadership. We will never let India bow its head low.”
This is the first official comment by a senior Union Cabinet minister on the ongoing India-China military stand-off.
“I want to assure the nation that under no circumstance we will allow dignity of India to be hurt,” Mr Singh told a news channel on Saturday on the stand-off at the line of actual control.
He said that it has been a clear and long standing policy of India to have good and peaceful relations with its neighbours. “But sometimes circumstances are such that (with China) things like these happen and such incidents have happened in the past as well,” said the defence minister.
Singh pointed out that even China has issued statement that they want to resolve the issue through diplomatic means.
“India’s effort is that tensions do not go up. Talks are going on at the diplomatic level and at the military level with China. Even China has shown interest to resolve the issue," defence minister said.
Singh underlined that there was no need for the United States to meditate since the two countries already had a bilateral mechanism to resolve such problems.
“Yesterday I spoke to the Secretary Defence of the US and I told him that there is a set mechanism under which if there is any problem between the two countries, it is resolved by military and diplomatic dialogue. The mechanism is in place and our talks are on with China,” he said.
He said that there have been perceptional differences at some points between India and China on line of actual control. “Our people go till LAC. Sometime their people cross LAC. This has been happening earlier also. This has not happened for the first time. But we have resolved these through dialogue,” said Singh. He pointed out that even Doklam standoff in 2017 was resolved by India and China through dialogue.
On Nepal, the defence minister said that any issue on Lipulekh could be resolved with the neighboring country through dialogue and that Nepal is like “our brother”.
