New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday said that while India’s relations with all major powers has evolved, with China it has not advanced due to the continuing tension of the borders. On Pakistan, he said that Islamabad knows that it has to give up cross-border terrorism if it wants to improve ties with India.
Answering questions at a press conference, the EAM said that India’s relationship with all the major powers has evolved, including with the US, with Russia despite all the challenges, with the EU, Germany, Japan, and Gulf, each one of them has advanced.
“Because people worked very hard, and in each of the relationships the Modi government has put in place policies, and the PM has led the diplomatic efforts from the front. We have tried to find areas of agreements, collaboration, of working together, tried to expand the tech base, the economy and find security partners and have been largely successful.
“Why is China the exception? In a sense the answer can only be given by China,” he said.
“Because China chose consciously, for some reason, in 2020, to breaking agreements to move forces to border areas.., It’s been made very clear to them that unless there is peace and tranquility in the border areas our relationship cannot progress. That is the obstacle that is holding the relationship from advancing,” he added.
To a question on India’s Neighbourhood First policy, and where Pakistan and China stood with respect to that, he said that India’s relations have seen both progress and challenges in the neighbourhood. “With Nepal, Bangladesh, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Myanmar the political relations are strong… for the first time a regional economy is being made, and petrol, electricity can be transported across borders and there is rail, road connectivity, and we are using Bangladesh ports for the first time..”
“There is much progress.”
On Pakistan, he said: “The challenges are due to Pakistan.. and cross border terrorism has been there from the beginning. We are not ready to tolerate it.
“If you say that keep cross border terror aside and progress the relations with Pakistan, we are not ready to do that. If Pakistan wants to take forward the relations, they know what they need to do, and the world too knows it.”
On China, he said that “China is our neighbour, and the biggest economy, and we will want that relations should be good. But relations can be good when there is peace and tranquility in the border areas and the agreements are adhered to.”
He said that both sides were talking to each other to resolve the border row.
“With China, we are talking, it is not that communications have broken down… Even before Galwan happened we were talking to them and saying look we are seeing movement of your forces, which in our view is violative of our understanding. The day after Galwan happened, I spoke to my counterpart… Since then we have engaged, our military commanders have engaged, our embassies have engaged. I have engaged…
Referring to Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang’s visit to Goa for the SCO Foreign Minister’s meeting last month, he said the two spoke on the border issue and that he also spoke with the Deputy Chinese FM on the sidelines of the BRICS meeting in Cape Town recently.
“The two of us have to find a way of disengaging, I don’t believe that the present impasse is in China’s interest either, as the relationship is impacted.
“And the relationship will continue to be impacted. If somehow there is an expectation that we will normalise, even if the border situation is not normal, it is not a well-founded expectation.
“…We have mechanisms, the WMCC and the senior high level commanders meeting; these continue to be there because at the end of the day disengagement is a very detailed process, and details have to be worked out by people on the ground.. All of this continues to happen,” he added.
UNI
