China calls to save ‘overall interests’
BEIJING:CHINA on Tuesday said the boundary issue with India should be placed in a “proper” position in bilateral ties and the two sides should ensure differences don’t escalate into disputes.
The Chinese foreign ministry said Beijing hopes New Delhi will work with it to safeguard the overall interests of bilateral ties.
In a separate comment in the context of New Delhi taking steps to cut down on its dependency on Chinese products, the foreign ministry said “artificially” damaging business cooperation between the two sides doesn’t serve India’s interests.
Foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin was responding to a question at a regular briefing on Indian external affairs minister S Jaishankar’s remarks during an August 2 interview, where he said reaching equilibrium with China is not going to be easy and India must stand its ground.
Jaishankar had made it clear the border standoff and bilateral ties could not be separated, indicating that peace and tranquillity along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) is mandatory for the bilateral relationship to progress.
“We have noted this report. We believe stronger solidarity and cooperation between China and India, (the) two largest developing countries and emerging economies will not only inject impetus into our respective development but also stability and positive energy to world’s peace and prosperity,” Wang told the briefing.
“The two should place the boundary issue in a proper position in bilateral relations and make sure differences do not escalate into disputes. I hope India will work with us in the same direction and safeguard overall interests of bilateral relations with concrete actions.”
Wang was separately asked to comment on New Delhi considering measures to prevent trade partners, mainly in Southeast Asia, from rerouting Chinese goods to India with little added value.he replied: “I want to stress that Chinese products to India met the demands of Indian consumers. The cooperation is mutually beneficial. Artificially damaging such cooperation doesn’t serve India’s own interests.”
Jaishankar’s interview and China’s reaction come against backdrop of the worst state of ties between the two nations following the June 15 clash in Galwan Valley that left 20 Indian soldiers dead. India recently said China needs to do more to ensure full disengagement and de-escalation in friction points along LAC.