Chinese Media Say No Room For Negotiations on Doklam
New Delhi: Firing a fresh salvo against India over the ongoing standoff at the Sikkim border, China on Saturday said there is ‘no room’ for negotiations and the only solution is the withdrawal of Indian troops from the Donglang or Doklam region.
India will face “embarrassment” if it does not withdraw its border troops to its own side and the situation could get “worse”, the official Xinhua news agency said in a commentary on Saturday night.
The remarks, made by Chinese state media, comes days after New Delhi said it is using diplomatic channels to resolve the issue with Beijing in a ‘peaceful manner’.
Xinhua warned India of major consequences if its troops are not withdrawn from the territory of Doklam. “If the trespassers of India do not backout unconditionally, the situation would get worse,” it said, further warning New Delhi of suffering an “embarrassment” if the Indian forces choose to continue to remain at standoff.
“India has repeatedly ignored China’s call for pulling its border-crossing troops from Doklam area back to its own territory. However, turning a deaf ear to China will but worsen the month-long standoff and put itself further into embarrassment,” the commentary added.
The statements issued through Xinhua, experts say, should be considered as the official policy line of Beijing, as the publication is controlled by the all-powerful Communist Party of China (CPC).
Significantly the commentary also referred to Ladakh region and linked it to Pakistan, China’s “iron brother” ally.
“India should not regard the existing situation as the same as or even similar to the previous two standoffs in 2013 and 2014 near Ladakh, a disputed area between China, Pakistan and India in southeastern Kashmir.Diplomatic efforts led the troop’s frictions there to a well-arranged end. But this time it is a totally different case,” it added.
The commentary, apart from warning India of repelling from Doklam, also accused New Delhi of spreading false propaganda against China. Rubbishing the Indian claims of acting on behalf of Bhutan in the disputed region, Xinhua opined that New Delhi is attempting to undermine the sovereignty of Thimphu.
It alleged that Bhutan “never sought India’s intervention” in the territorial dispute with China over Doklam, referred to as Donglang by Beijing. Accusing India of “lying” before the world, the Chinese government’s mouthpiece read, “New Delhi claimed encroachment of its own territory by China before saying it sent troops to ’protect’ its ‘ally’ Bhutan, a sovereign state which has apparently so far made no such an invitation for the sake of that boundary area.”
The standoff at Sikkim erupted in mid-June, after the Indian forces prevented the road construction party of China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) from entering Doklam, lying at the tri-juncture of India, China and Bhutan.