Respect for LAC essential for normalcy in relations: India to China

India has yet again conveyed to China that ensuring ‘peace and tranquillity’ and ‘respect’ for the Line of Actual Control (LAC) are essential for normalcy in bilateral relations.

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval conveyed New Delhi’s concerns at a meeting today with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the sidelines of the BRICS – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa -- NSAs meet at St Petersburg. 

Doval’s words on the ongoing military stand-off along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh are in line with what External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar conveyed to Wang Yi at two separate meetings in July -- one in Kazakhstan and the other in Laos.

Jaishankar who is today in Geneva, Switzerland, said at an event that Galwan Valley clashes of June 2020 affected the India-China ties. “One cannot have violence at the border and then say the rest of the relationship is insulated from it,” he said.

On the Doval-Wang Yi meet at St Petersburg, the Ministry of External Affairs said, “The NSA conveyed to China that peace and tranquillity in border areas and respect for LAC are essential for normalcy in bilateral relations.”

Both sides must fully abide by relevant bilateral agreements, protocols, and understandings reached in the past by the two governments, a statement of the MEA added.

Doval and Wang Yi agreed to work with urgency and redouble their efforts to realise complete disengagement in the remaining areas along the LAC.

The MEA said the “the meeting gave the two sides an opportunity to review the recent efforts towards finding an early resolution of the remaining issues along the LAC”.

Meanwhile, in Geneva, Jaishankar, at an interactive session at the Global Centre for Security Policy - an independent think-tank -- said "Negotiations are going on. We made some progress. Roughly 75 per cent of the disengagement problems are sorted out," he said, adding "We still have some things to do."

Two days ago, in Germany, the minister had said India is "not closed to business from China", but the issue is in which sectors the country does business with Beijing and on what terms.