India pushes for military talks with China on LAC pullback

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, July 22

With no signs of a meeting between military commanders eight days after External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Dushanbe, the Indian Foreign Office said the two leaders had agreed to convene the talks at the earliest to discuss all the remaining issues and seek a mutually acceptable solution.

“The EAM had recalled that both sides had agreed that a prolongation of the existing situation was not in the interest of either side and that it was visibly impacting the relationship in a negative manner,” said MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi while referring to the meeting of the two Foreign Minister on the sidelines of a SCO Ministerial in Tajikistan.

There was also an understanding that both sides will continue to ensure stability on the ground and neither side will take any unilateral action that could increase tension, he added.

India has emphasised that the maintenance of peace and tranquillity in the border areas has been the foundation for the development of ties since 1988. Attempts to change status quo last year, which also disregarded commitments under the 1993 and 1996 agreements, have inevitably affected ties. It was, therefore, in mutual interest that the two sides work towards early resolution of the remaining issues along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh, while fully abiding by bilateral agreements and protocols.

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