JOIN USChina tacitly reasserts its sovereignty claim on Galwan Valley
China has tacitly reasserted its claim of sovereignty on Galwan Valley even as it agreed with India to resolve the military stand-off along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) as soon as possible.
“The right and wrong of what recently happened at the Galwan Valley in the western sector of the China-India boundary is very clear. China will continue firmly safeguarding our territorial sovereignty as well as peace and tranquility in the border areas,” Wang Yi, the Foreign Minister of the communist country, told Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s National Security Advisor, Ajit Doval, during a phone-call on Sunday.
He also said that China would expect India to avoid “amplifying differences” and guide the opinion of its people in the “right direction”.
India earlier rubbished China’s claim of sovereignty over Galwan Valley in Ladakh as "completely untenable”, underlining that such exaggerated claims would not help defuse tension along the disputed boundary.
The Galwan Valley is the scene where 20 Indian Army soldiers were killed and several others were injured in a violent face-off with the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers on June 15.
Wang and Doval are Special Representatives of India and China for boundary negotiations and strategic consultations.
A press release issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Chinese Government quoted Wang saying that achieving development and revitalization was the top priority for both China and India, where the two nations shared long-term strategic interests. “Both sides should adhere to the strategic assessment that instead of posing threats, the two countries provide each other with development opportunities. Both sides should pay great attention to the current complex situation facing China-India bilateral relations and work together to overcome and turn it around as soon as possible,” Chinese Foreign Minister was quoted saying.
He also expressed hope that India could work with China to guide public opinion in the right direction, keep and advance bilateral exchanges and cooperation, and avoid amplifying the differences and complicating matters so as to jointly uphold the big picture of China-India relations.