Rajnath, China defmin meet

Discuss ways to resolve stand-off in Ladakh; Rajnath says trust is key for peace

Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Friday met his Chinese counterpart General Wei Fenghe in Moscow in the first high-level political contact between the two countries who are involved in a tense military stand-off in the Ladakh sector for the last four months. The meeting lasted two hours and 20 minutes.

The two sides discussed ways to bring down tensions between the two nuclear-armed countries. The Chinese side requested for the meeting with Singh, who is in Moscow to attend the joint meeting of the defence ministers of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

The meeting started at 9.30 pm IST at Hotel Metropol in Moscow. Defence secretary Ajay Kumar and Indian ambassador to Russia D.B. Venkatesh Varma were part of the Indian delegation.

Speaking at the SCO meeting earlier, Singh said peace and security in the region demand a climate of trust, non-aggression, peaceful resolution of differences and respect for international rules.

Singh’s comments are being seen as a veiled message to China ahead of his bilateral talks with Wei.

Rajnath Singh referred to the Second World War and said its memories teach the globe the “folies of aggression” of one state upon another that brings “destruction” to all.

“Peaceful stable and secure region of SCO member states, which is home to over 40 per cent of the global population, demands a climate of trust and cooperation, nonaggression, respect for international rules and norms, sensitivity to each other’s interest and peaceful resolution of differences,” Singh said.