Beijing: Beijing: China has said it will work “closely” with India to properly handle the ongoing border tension as it strongly criticized the United States for saying it was concerned by Beijing’s attempts to coerce its neighbors, including India.
The Chinese defense ministry said the border problem is a bilateral matter and both China and India oppose interference from a third party.
Chinese defense ministry spokesperson Wu Qian said, “…some American politicians are so fond of using the word ‘coerce’ that they seem to have forgotten that the US is the inventor and master player of ‘coercive diplomacy’.”
China neither “coerces” nor is “coerced” by others, and strongly opposes the US forcing “coercive diplomacy” on other countries, Wu said at the monthly defense ministry press conference recently.
Wu was referring to comments made by the White House press secretary, Jen Psaki, ahead of the 14th round of military talks between India and China on January 12 to resolve the ongoing tension along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.
“We’ve been pretty clear how we view Beijing’s behavior in the region and around the world. We believe it can be destabilizing. And we’re concerned by the People’s Republic of China’s attempt to intimidate its neighbors,” Psaki had said.
Referring to the China-India border issue, Wu stressed that the Chinese side believed that the last round of talks were positive and constructive.
Indian and Chinese border troops have been locked in a border standoff in eastern Ladakh since May 2020, when a violent clash in the Pangong lake area led to both sides gradually deploying tens of thousands of soldiers as well as heavy weaponry along the border.
Several rounds of military and diplomatic talks have only resulted in partial disengagement of troops until now.
India has repeatedly and consistently rejected China’s allegations that Indian troops crossed over to the Chinese side of the LAC in eastern Ladakh, asserting that New Delhi has always taken a responsible approach towards border management and maintaining peace and tranquility in the border areas.
