China and India agree to resolve border conflict soon

Positive signal

China and India have pledged to work together to find an early resolution to their decades-old border dispute in the Himalayas. Both countries concluded their 31st round of diplomatic talks on the issue on Thursday, pledging to strengthen ties and continue to reduce tensions at the border.

Scene of the 31st round of diplomatic talks on the border dispute between China and India. Photo: SCMP

“The two sides agreed to strengthen dialogue and consultation, address each other's legitimate concerns and reach a mutually acceptable solution as soon as possible,” a statement from China's Foreign Ministry said after the meeting in Beijing.

Both sides will "strictly abide by border-related agreements" and "improve the border situation at an early date," the statement added.

Similarly, a statement issued by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs after the meeting also said that the two sides agreed to enhance communication through both “diplomatic and military channels”, adding that “respect for the LAC (Line of Actual Control) is essential for restoring normalcy in bilateral relations”.

The Line of Actual Control is the 3,200-km effective border between China and India that has not been precisely defined due to lack of consensus.

The 31st round of border talks comes just a month after the previous round, held in New Delhi, where both sides agreed to speed up talks as the standoff along the disputed areas entered its fourth year.

The composition of the 21st round of talks was largely the same as the previous one. The meeting was co-chaired by Mr. Hong Liang, Director General of the Boundary and Oceanic Affairs Department of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Gourangalal Das, Secretary for East Asia at the Indian Ministry of External Affairs.

Diplomats, defense and immigration officials from both sides also attended the meeting. On the sidelines of the talks, Mr. Das also had a private meeting with Mr. Liu Jinsong, Director General of the Asian Affairs Department of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

China's Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that the two sides exchanged views on bilateral relations as well as regional issues of mutual concern.

Hotspots in China-India relations

The border dispute has long been a flashpoint in China-India relations, sparking a brief but bloody war in 1962. Since then, the two countries have been divided by the LAC, with no formal agreement on the exact location of the border or the more than 120,000 square kilometers of disputed territory.

Both countries maintain a significant military presence in the border area.

The first round of diplomatic talks to resolve border tensions between the two countries was held in 2012. Officially named the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Boundary Affairs (WMCC), the talks were initiated by then Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao during his visit to India in 2010, when the two countries were growing economically closer.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (right) shakes hands with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar. Photo: Bloomberg

However, border tensions have heated up since 2020, after clashes in the Galwan River valley left dozens of Indian soldiers and at least four Chinese soldiers dead. Other border clashes have been reported at least twice since 2022.

Several high-level defense and diplomatic talks followed. These helped to ease tensions but did not fundamentally change the military stalemate along the western Himalayas.

Last month, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on the sidelines of a regional meeting in Kazakhstan, and two weeks later in Laos, moves that were generally seen as part of efforts by both sides to ease tensions in the relationship.

Quang Anh (according to SCMP)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/trung-quoc-va-an-do-nhat-tri-som-giai-quyet-xung-dot-bien-gioi-post310073.html