India’s NSG bid is complicated: China ‘Airspace breach due to territorial dispute’
FIRM STAND Chinese foreign minister rules out support, repeats stand on allowing new members into the Nuclear Suppliers’ Group
China on Monday said India’s bid to join the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) had become “more complicated”, effectively ruling out any immediate backing for New Delhi’s application to enter the bloc that controls trade in nuclear technology and know-how.
Beijing’s refusal to back New Delhi’s NSG application has been one of the key reasons for recent strains in bilateral ties. The new description of India’s application by China’s assistant foreign minister Li Huilai came within weeks of New Delhi boycotting the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing.
Li commented about the NSG issue at a media briefing on Monday morning, days ahead of a possible meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Astana during June 8-9.
“About the NSG, it is a new issue under the new circumstances and it is more complicated than we previously imagined. China supports the NSG to have thorough consultations for a nondiscriminatory and universally applicable solution to all the countries,” he said.
Li, who was interacting with the media on Xi’s participation in the SCO Summit, did not give details of the “new circumstances” and complications but repeated China’s stand on allowing new members into the NSG. “China supports the NSG to have consultation for reaching nondiscriminatory and universally applicable solution, applicable to all members of the NSG,” he said.
Li echoed what foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said last month, indicating China will not support India’s entry to the NSG at the group’s plenary meeting in June till the bloc evolves a universal formula to accept applications from all countries that haven’t signed the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty (NPT).
The inclusion of non-NPT countries – such as India and Pakistan – in the NSG should follow a two-step approach – evolving a universal formula for such nations and then taking up each country’s applications, China had said repeatedly.
Hua said in May that China’s position on non-NPT applicants has not changed. The NSG should build consensus on the two-step approach, she added.
“China and India are each other’s important neighbours and both are developing rapidly. They are both emerging new market economies and are important forces for upholding world peace and stability,” Li added.
China on Monday defended its military helicopters hovering over Chamoli district of Uttarkhand, saying it has a territorial dispute in the eastern section of the frontier with India even as it welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks that not a single bullet has been fired in four decades despite the border row.
Responding to reports that the Chinese helicopters had violated Indian airspace, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said: “In principle China and India have territorial disputes in the eastern section of the China-India border.”
She indicated the helicopters were on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC). “Chinese military carry out regular patrols in the relevant areas. We hope that the two sides will make joint efforts to maintain tranquillity and peace of the border area,” she said.
China also welcomed Modi’s comments at the St Petersburg International Forum that not a bullet has been fired at the SinoIndia frontier in recent decades despite the border dispute. It said both countries are committed to an early settlement of the boundary question.
Modi made the comments on Friday while sharing the stage with Russian President Vladimir Putin and the leaders of Austria and Moldova. “It is true that we have a border dispute with China. But in the last 40 years, not a single bullet has been fired because of border dispute,” Modi said.
Two helicopters of the People’s Liberation Army hovered over Barahoti in Chamoli district on Saturday, triggering concern in India’s security establishment about the fourth such incursion into Indian airspace since March.
Official sources in New Delhi said the Zhiba attack helicopters, which returned to the Chinese side after about five minutes, could have carried out aerial photography of Indian troops during a possible reconnaissance mission. The Indian Air Force is probing the incident.
Reacting to Modi’s remark at a regular news briefing, spokesperson Hua Chunying said China and India are maintaining a “steady” relationship.