Talks alone will resolve LAC stand-off: MEA

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, June 7

India and China would persist with military and diplomatic engagements to resolve the situation and to ensure peace and tranquillity in the border areas, said the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) after the latest round of border talks on June 6 between the army commanders ended in a stalemate.

“Talks took place in a cordial and positive atmosphere. Both sides agreed to peacefully resolve the situation in the border areas in accordance with various bilateral agreements,” it said in a statement released on Sunday.

The MEA indicated that both sides were in for a long haul and that despite bringing in military reinforcements, the accent would be on dialogue. In this respect, it reiterated its earlier stand of May 21 that “peace and tranquillity in the India-China border regions are essential for the overall development of bilateral relations”.

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It said the four hours of talks between the army commanders also noted that this year marked the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries and agreed that an early resolution would contribute to the further development of the relationship.

While the Indian media has prominently highlighted the stand-off, its Chinese counterparts have refrained from highlighting it. Beijing had, a fortnight back, leaked a video of a May 5 scuffle between the troops of both sides which had garnered over three crore views from the Chinese netizens.

But apart from that, respected media outlets, such as Xinhua, People’s Daily and CGTN, mentioned India in their commentaries in the global fight against the pandemic but kept the border stand-off away from their web pages.

Global Times, which has the external audience in mind, maintained its psy-ops by uploading a video that supposedly showed a Chinese airborne brigade taking just a few hours to manoeuvre from Central China to “northwestern, high-altitude region amid China-India border tensions”.

Otherwise, as is the case with the MEA here, the Chinese officials have maintained a low profile on the border tension.

Statements by the Chinese Foreign Office have rejected the US mediation offers and reiterated bilateralism as the fulcrum to resolve the situation.