Respect all countries’ sovereignty: China to Pak

BEIJING : Against the backdrop of India-Pakistan tensions, Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi told his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries should be respected. Responding to an “urgent” late night phone call from Qureshi on Wednesday, Wang “stressed that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries should be respected”, China’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

The statement quoted Wang, who is also a state councillor, as saying that “China is unwilling to see acts that violate the norms of international relations”.

The conversation took place after Pakistani fighter jets violated Indian airspace on Wednesday and both sides said they shot down each other’s warplanes. A day earlier, India carried out an air strike on a Jaish-eMohammed (JeM) training camp at Balakot in Pakistan.

Wang and Qureshi spoke hours after India’s external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj left China after a meeting of the foreign ministers of Russia, India, and China (RIC).

An RIC joint communiqué said the three sides strongly con-

BEIJING REITERATED HOPE THAT BOTH SIDES WOULD EXERCISE RESTRAINT, PREVENT FURTHER ESCALATION

demned terror and “stressed that terrorist groups cannot be supported and used in political and geopolitical goals”. Swaraj made a strong pitch for concerted global efforts to combat terror and said she raised the Pulwama attack with her Russian and Chinese counterparts.

During his phone conversation with Wang on Wednesday, Qureshi said he hoped “China would continue to play a constructive role in easing the current tension”. Wang expressed concern about the escalation of tension and briefed Qureshi on China’s efforts to “persuade and facilitate talks”.

Wang reiterated his hope both sides would exercise restraint and fulfil their commitments to prevent any escalation, the statement added.

Meanwhile, China’s defence ministry said on Thursday it is closely following the escalation of tension over the past two days and urged India and Pakistan to be restrained.

Reacting for the first time since Indian and Pakistani aircraft engaged in combat, defence ministry spokesperson Col Ren Guoqiang told a monthly news briefing both countries should handle the situation through dialogue. Ren said peace between India and Pakistan is conducive to regional peace, stability and development.

Answering a question on whether China will issue an alert if the situation deteriorates, Ren said China believes both sides “should exercise restraint, properly handle relevant issues through dialogue and consultation, and take effective measures to prevent further escalation of the conflict.”