2 min readNew DelhiJul 3, 2020 01:28 AM IST
First published on: Jul 3, 2020 at 01:28 AM IST
A file photo of Indian and Chinese personnel on the LAC. (ANI)
Reiterating its position after the third senior military commander-level engagement, India on Thursday said that it expected the Chinese side to “sincerely follow up” and “ensure the expeditious restoration of peace and tranquility” in the border areas.
“Both sides have emphasised the need for an expeditious, phased and stepwise de-escalation as a priority,” the Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said on Thursday.
He said this is in keeping with the agreement between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, during their conversation on June 17, that the overall situation would be handled in a “responsible manner” and that both sides would implement the disengagement understanding of June 6 “sincerely”
The tone and tenor of MEA statements were much more measured on Thursday, as compared to last week, when New Delhi had talked about “vitiating the atmosphere”, and that China is “amassing troops” on its side of the LAC.
Answering questions on the India-China border stand-off, the MEA spokesperson said, “India and China have been having discussions through established diplomatic and military channels to address the situation along the LAC in India, China border areas.”
Senior commanders of two sides met on June 6, 22 and 30.
“Diplomatic engagements are also continuing in parallel. Last week, on 24th June, a meeting of the working mechanism for consultation and coordination on India, China border affairs was also held,” Srivastava said.
The senior commanders meeting on June 30 at Chushul was the third such senior military commander-level engagement to discuss issues related to disengagement at the face-off sites.
“The discussions in the latest meeting of the senior commanders reflected the commitment of both sides to reduce the tensions along the LAC,” Srivastava said.
“We expect the Chinese side to sincerely follow up and ensure the expeditious restoration of peace and tranquility in the border areas as per bilateral agreements and protocols,” he said.
A file photo of Indian and Chinese personnel on the LAC. (ANI)
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