Important dialogue between senior military leaders on June 6, he says
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday acknowledged that China had moved troops in “significant numbers” in the ongoing stand-off at the Line of Actual Control (LAC). There was an important dialogue between the two countries scheduled on June 6 to resolve the issue, he stated.
Separately, sources said a dialogue was held on Tuesday at the Major General level.
“It is true that there have been differences on the border at this time. A significant number of Chinese troops have come in. India too has done what it should,” Mr. Singh told CNN News18. “As of now, negotiations are going on at the military level. On June 6, there will be talks between senior military officers. I discussed about this with the Army Chief today,” he said.
Dialogue between military commanders had been going on daily, sources said, including at the level of Major Generals and on Tuesday too. No concrete resolution had been achieved, it had been learnt and the talks would continue, the sources said.
Mr. Singh observed that China should also think seriously in this regard so that the issue was resolved completely. Referring to the differences in perception between the two countries on the alignment of the LAC, he said there was something constantly going on between India and China regarding the border. “There will hardly be a year when there is no face-off on the border between both the Indian Army and the Chinese Army,” he said. Sometime there had been such tensions that firearms had been snatched, he noted.
Specifically asked to comment on reports of Chinese troops moving inside Indian territory, he said without getting into specifics, “India will not infringe on anyone’s sovereignty and at the same time India will let not anyone infringe on its sovereignty.”
For close to a month now, Indian and Chinese troops have been engaged in stand-offs at several locations along the LAC after Chinese troops moved into Indian territory at Pangong Tso, Galwan Nalah, Hot Springs in eastern Ladakh and Naku La in Sikkim. Chinese troops have set up tents and brought in equipment inside at some places while also building up presence close to Indian positions on their side of the border.
Mr. Singh later said on Twitter quoting the interview that India’s negotiation with China was on and so he “would not like to express doubts.” “If the issue is resolved through dialogue then what else can be a good thing,” he said and added that the ‘forehead of India’ would not bend under any circumstances.
With inputs from The Hindu