India and China are likely to hold the 16th round of high-level military talks on July 17 to resolve the issues in remaining friction points along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, people familiar with the development said on Wednesday.
The National People's Congress concluded at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Monday March 13, 2023 as a new set of leaders took charge of the Chinese government, and the ones they replaced head to retirement.
If the visit takes place, it will be the first trip by a senior Chinese leader to India after the eastern Ladakh standoff between the two countries began in May 2020.
"China and the Afghan Taliban have unimpeded and effective communication and consultation," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a media briefing in Beijing.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has sent condolence messages to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he was shocked to learn about the deadly bridge collapse in Gujarat's Morbi city that claimed 135 lives.
However, there will be no bilateral meetings between Swaraj, Sitharaman with their Pakistani counterparts.
China has defended its plan to build the world's largest dam on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet, assuring that the project will not affect riparian states and safety issues have been addressed through decades of studies. The dam, estimated to cost USD 137 billion, has raised concerns in India and Bangladesh, but Chinese authorities maintain that the project has been thoroughly studied and safeguards are in place. The dam is part of China's efforts to develop clean energy and respond to climate change.
In the talks, China emphasised that the two sides should proceed from the fundamental interests of China, India and adhere to the strategic height and long-term perspective of China-India relations, the readout said.
China supplied more than $20 billion worth of arms to Pakistan. These include 20 J-10CE and JF-17 Block III fighter aircraft, Wing Loong drones, frigates, submarines, Hongqi HQ-9P surface-to-air missiles, 240 PL-15E air-to-air missiles, LY-80 air defence systems, ZDK early warning aircraft and other weapons.
China does not have to give up what it took in 2020, it will never give up its claim to Arunachal Pradesh, Ladakh and other areas, and it has all the time now to plan its next surprise, points out Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (retd).
India and China have agreed to take measures to further ease the situation at the borders while continuing to implement the October agreement to resolve the standoff in eastern Ladakh comprehensively. The two sides held the 32nd meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation & Coordination on China-India Border Affairs (WMCC) in New Delhi, agreeing to maintain communication through diplomatic and military channels and safeguard sustainable peace and stability in the border areas. This meeting follows the October 21 agreement between the two countries to resolve the over four-year-long military standoff in eastern Ladakh.
China on Thursday said the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Russia's Kazan on Wednesday carries a "great significance" as they reached an "important common understandings" to improve the bilateral ties.
Pakistan's deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, who is in China on a four-day visit, and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi co-chaired the fifth round of the foreign minister-level China-Pakistan Strategic Dialogue.
Indian doubles coach Tan Kim Her praised Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty for winning a bronze medal at the World Championships but rued the missed opportunity, saying the doubles specialists need to work more on their fitness to go the distance.
India and China on Wednesday held 'constructive' and 'forward-looking' diplomatic talks to resolve the over four-year border standoff along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh but there was clear no indication of any breakthrough.
The former World Champion reaches the pre-quarterfinals for the first time since 2021.
Addressing a symposium on the international situation and China's foreign relations in 2022, Wang said both countries have maintained communication through diplomatic and military-to-military channels.
In a meeting on the sidelines of the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Dushanbe on Thursday, the two foreign ministers exchanged views on the current situation in the region and agreed that military and diplomatic officials of both sides should meet again and discuss resolving the remaining issues at the earliest.
China has justified as "goodwill" gesture its policy of issuing stapled visas to residents of Arunachal Pradesh, saying such a policy does not "undermine" the positions of both India and China which have disputes over big parts of that area.
"Our relationship is so big that it is no longer a bilateral relationship. It has global dimensions," the report quoted Jaishankar as saying.
India and China have agreed to work towards a "roadmap" for rebuilding mutual trust following the border standoff in eastern Ladakh, according to a statement from the Indian Defence Ministry. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met with his Chinese counterpart Dong Jun in Vientiane, Laos, on the sidelines of a regional security conclave. Singh called for drawing lessons from the "unfortunate border clashes" of 2020 and emphasized the need for cooperation rather than conflict. Both sides agreed to work towards a roadmap for rebuilding mutual trust and understanding, and a meeting of the Special Representatives and Secretary-Vice Minister mechanism will also take place soon.
Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi discussed ways to further strengthen the "iron-clad friendship" between the two countries as the two sides signed five agreements to deepen their bilateral cooperation in various fields, the foreign office said on Tuesday.
India's engagement with China is "complex" and Chinese attempts to unilaterally alter the status quo along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh starting from April-May 2020 seriously disturbed the peace and tranquillity in border areas, the ministry of external affairs (MEA) said in a report on Monday.
Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi Monday said there is still a 'degree' of standoff between the Indian and Chinese militaries along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh and both sides need to sit down and firm up a broader understanding on how to calm down the situation.
Wang began a two-day trip to Pakistan on Tuesday primarily to attend a meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organisation Islamic Cooperation (OIC) as a special guest.
The talks are following up the outcome of the 19th round of Corps Commander-level talks held between the two sides on August 13-14 at the Chushul Moldo border meeting point.
The discussions took place on the sidelines of the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting.
India and China on discussed the recent intrusion by Chinese troops at the Depsang Valley during External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid's two-hour-long meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.
Wang said that the situation in Ukraine has changed rapidly and that China laments the outbreak of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia and is 'extremely concerned' with the harm to civilians, China's state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
India's Ayush Shetty produced a sensational straight-game victory over former world champion Loh Kean Yew of Singapore at the Orleans Masters.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Sunday met Sri Lanka's top leadership and discussed a host of issues, including the debt crisis faced by the island nation, investments, promoting tourism and the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic as the two countries marked the 65th anniversary of diplomatic ties.
China also removed Finance Minister Liu Kun and appointed Lan Fo'an in his place. Liu is the third senior Cabinet minister to be replaced without any explanation.
China reiterated that no meaningful dialogue can be held with India until it "unconditionally" withdraws troops from the disputed Doklam area and said Foreign Minister Wang Yi has authoritatively made Beijing's position clear on the issue.
At a media briefing, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said India monitors such developments.
'The two sides should support rather than undermine each other, strengthen cooperation rather than guard against each other, and enhance mutual trust rather than be suspicious of each other'
China on Wednesday said the latest round of the border talks with India was held in a "candid and pragmatic atmosphere" and the two sides had a "positive, constructive and in-depth discussion" on the resolution of the remaining issues along the Line of Actual Control in the Western Sector.
A peace keeping role for India is a distinct possibility. Indian military has both the numbers and experience to carry out this job, observes Colonel Anil A Athale (Retd).
The armies are working to schedule their seventh round of talks to take steps towards "early and complete" disengagement of troops along the LAC in eastern Ladakh.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will attend a two-day trilateral meeting of the foreign ministers of Russia, India and China in New Delhi from November 10 to discuss regional and international issues.
China has approved the construction of the world's largest dam on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet, close to the Indian border. The USD 137 billion project, which is expected to dwarf even China's own Three Gorges Dam, has raised concerns in India and Bangladesh, the downstream riparian states. Concerns in India are centered around China's potential to control water flow, potentially enabling the release of large amounts of water to flood border areas in times of hostilities. The dam is part of China's 14th Five-Year Plan, and the Chinese government claims that the project is safe and prioritizes ecological protection.
