Beijing is willing to work with New Delhi to improve relations following Narendra Modi’s election for a third consecutive term as Indian prime minister, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy has said. The statement comes a day after Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said that resolving long-standing issues with neighboring China and Pakistan will be among New Delhi’s foreign policy priorities.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday, the spokesperson for Beijing’s embassy in New Delhi stated that “A sound and stable China-India relationship is in the interest of both nations and conducive to peace and development in the region and beyond. China is willing to work with India to push forward bilateral relations in the right direction.”
A day earlier, Chinese Premier Li Qiang congratulated Modi on his third term as prime minister, conveying that the steady development of ties between the two countries not only benefits people, but “injects stability and positive energy into the region and the world,” Xinhua reported.
The Chinese statements come after Jaishankar outlined the newly formed coalition government’s priorities. After starting his second term as foreign minister on Monday, he emphasized that India’s focus is on “finding a solution for the border issues that still continue.”
India and China share a vaguely defined 3,440km (2,100-mile) border called the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Himalayan region, where numerous skirmishes have occurred. Tensions flared in June 2020, after troops clashed in the disputed Galwan Valley, resulting in casualties on both sides.
Despite both countries making efforts to de-escalate and disengage, several friction points remain. New Delhi and Beijing have held more than 20 rounds of border talks since the Galwan incident, with the latest taking place in March this year. An Indian statement at the time noted the two sides had had an “in-depth” exchange of views on how to achieve “complete disengagement” and resolve the issues along the LAC.
According to a statement by the Indian Foreign Ministry, both sides have also agreed to maintain “regular contact” through “diplomatic and military channels” to maintain the peace.
Meanwhile, US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, who according to Reuters has led Washington’s efforts to boost ties with India to deter China, has commented on the potential rapprochement between the two Asian powerhouses.
“I think we wish the Indians well in deliberations,” he stated at a Washington think tank on Wednesday. “I think the truth is that anytime two countries can find a degree of the common space to reduce tensions, I think we have to support that.”
Beijing previously issued a warning to Washington, which waded into the controversy between India and China over the renaming of disputed territories, stating that the “China-India boundary question is a matter between the two countries and has nothing to do with the US side.”
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