TRUMP WADES INTO INDO-CHINA ROW, OFFERS TO MEDIATE

United States President Donald Trump waded into the Sino-Indian border dispute for the second time in the past four months, calling it a “very nasty” situation and saying the US was ready to mediate to help both countries and would “love to get involved”.

This comes even as Russia has emerged as a key player and is seen to have been nudging India and China to talk to each other at a political level to resolve the situation in the Ladakh sector and ease Sino-Indian military tensions.

US President Trump was quoted by news agencies, as saying in Washington, “While we’re at it, we’re talking about China and India are going at it pretty good on the border, as you know. It's been very nasty. And we stand ready to help with respect to China and India. If we can do anything, we would love to get involved and help. And we are talking to both countries about that.”

When asked whether he thought China was bullying India, the US President was quoted as saying, “I hope not... But they (China) are certainly going at it. They are going at it much more strongly than a lot of people even understand.”

It may be recalled that President Trump had first offered to mediate between the two Asian giants in May-end, well before the deadly Galwan valley clash in the Ladakh sector in mid-June between Indian and Chinese troops. However, India had politely but indirectly declined the mediation offer then, saying it was talking directly to China which had also rejected the US President’s offer then. The response of both feuding neighbours to the fresh offer is expected to be the same as then.