New Delhi: Meeting of Foreign Ministers of G-20 countries has been organised in Indonesia on the 7th and 8th of July. There is a possibility that Indian Foreign Minister S Jaishankar and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will hold discussions during this meeting. This meeting could be significant against the background of the brewing border dispute between the two countries.
The Chinese activities near the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Ladakh region are becoming dangerous as China has increased the deployment of fighter jets in the areas near Ladakh. Ironically, while China adopts aggressive military postures, it is taking the initiative to de-escalate tensions over the LAC dispute in Ladakh on a diplomatic level.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi participated in the G-7 meeting held last week. India’s importance as an economic and diplomatic power was underlined during the session. After that, the Indian Prime Minister visited the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which signified India’s role in the Gulf countries. India has avoided taking a stand against Russia over the Ukraine conflict, despite pressure from western countries. Yet India’s position on the global stage is elevated looking at the response from the western countries and the cooperation of Gulf countries. But China, which has stood by Russia on the Ukraine conflict issue, has not received any concessions from the western countries.
The United States and European countries have consistently highlighted the issue of China supporting Russia. China’s relations with the European countries are currently highly strained. It is also becoming difficult for western countries to overlook China’s aggressive stance and activities in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Tibet. Looking at China’s growing ambitions and aggression in the Indo-Pacific region, countries like Australia, Japan and New Zealand have decided to cooperate with the United States, urgently indicating a need to take action against China. The Chinese debt trap is becoming a common belief worldwide, and China has become unpopular even among the African nations.
In this scenario, no other responsible country is supporting China except for Russia and a few other countries. Realising its position on the global diplomatic platform, China has started preparations to resolve the border dispute peacefully with India. The Chinese government media, spewing venom against India after the Galwan conflict on the LAC in Ladakh, are now refraining from criticising India. Instead, the Chinese government media was seen appreciating the fitting reply the Indian Foreign Minister gave to the European countries who were exerting pressure on the Ukraine issue. China is delivering messages for diplomatic negotiations through all these gestures. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who visited India in March, proposed diplomatic talks to reduce the tension on the LAC. But the Indian stand is clear that no discussions on the diplomatic level are possible unless China withdraws its military from the LAC.
China is making repeated appeals that the military officials negotiate on the border issue, but that should not affect the bilateral cooperation. But India has dismissed China’s demand saying that a cohesive environment is required for economic and diplomatic cooperation. India is not likely to change its stand if the meeting happens between the Foreign Ministers at Bali in Indonesia. India’s firm stand indicates that if the talks are to be successful, China, attempting an intrusion on the LAC in Ladakh, will have to withdraw its military.
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