India says its relations with China are at a crossroads, with the months-long military standoff in the border mountains seriously disrupting relations between the two countries.
Addressing a conference to discuss India-China relations on Thursday (Jan. 28), External Affairs Minister Su Jaisheng said, “Today, India-China relations are really at a crossroads.” He added: “The choices made will have far-reaching implications, not only for the two countries, but for the entire world.”
Sujesen’s remarks were seen as a move by New Delhi to harden its stance on China.
Sujesen said, “Peace and tranquility in the border region is the basis for developing relations in other areas.” He said that if the border is constantly confronted and peace and tranquility is disturbed, then “it is inevitable that other aspects of the relationship will also be disturbed.”
The first clash of 2021 between Indian and Chinese soldiers took place Jan. 20 in the Nakula district of northeastern Sikkim state. Multiple media outlets reported that at least 18 Chinese soldiers attempting to cross into Nakula, which India claims as its sovereign territory, were stopped by Indian soldiers, leading to clashes with sticks and stones. Soldiers on both sides were armed but did not fire.
Nakula, which links India’s Sikkim state with China’s Tibetan region, was the scene of an unarmed fight between Chinese and Indian soldiers at the Sikkim border in May last year; the two sides clashed again in June in the Galwan Valley in Ladakh, where both sides attacked each other with sticks in addition to fighting with their bare hands.
With steady growth in exchanges over the past few decades, China has become one of India’s largest trading partners, said Sujesen. Official Indian data show that the United States was India’s largest trading partner in 2018 and 2019, with India-China trade slightly lower than India-US trade. India and China are also cooperating closely in investment, infrastructure development, tourism and Education, Su Jaisheng said.
Faced with the changes in India-China bilateral relations, Su Jaisheng said that so far, India has not received a credible explanation from China for its change of position or the reasons for China’s military buildup in the border area.
Experts analyze that the Indian and Chinese armies currently have a total of 100,000 troops stationed on their front lines and in deeper areas.
At the meeting, Su Jaisheng proposed eight conditions for improving bilateral relations, including compliance with the border agreement, recognition of development aspirations and management of differences.
Su Jaisheng’s speech on India-China relations came days after the ninth round of meetings between the two countries’ military commanders (Jan. 24). A joint press release issued by the Chinese Ministry of Defense on Monday night (25) said the two sides agreed to push for early disengagement of frontline forces and agreed to follow the important consensus of the two leaders and continue the momentum of dialogue and negotiations.
The Chinese government has not yet commented on Su Jiesheng’s remarks.
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