Three ‘mutuals’, respect for LAC essential for normalcy in relations, EAM Jaishankar tells Chinese FM

Vientiane: External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar once again stressed the importance of the three mutuals – mutual respect, mutual interest, and mutual sensitivity – to India-China ties during his meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the sidelines of the ASEAN-related Foreign Ministers’ meetings in Laos’ capital Vientiane on Thursday.

“Continued our ongoing discussions about our bilateral relationship. The state of the border will necessarily be reflected on the state of our ties. Agreed on the need to give strong guidance to complete the disengagement process,” EAM Jaishankar posted on X after the meeting with Wang Yi who is also a Member of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Politburo

“Must ensure full respect for the LAC and past agreements. It is in our mutual interest to stabilize our ties. We should approach the immediate issues with a sense of purpose and urgency,” he added.

In his opening remarks at the meeting, the Indian Minister recalled their meeting during the SCO Summit earlier this month as he said that Thursday’s meeting “provides another opportunity to take forward our ongoing discussions about our bilateral relationship”.

Ties between India and China, “the two most populous nations and among the two key economies of the world today”, have “an exceptional significance”, he said, adding that their “ability to ensure that they are stable and forward-looking is essential both for the prospects of Asia and that of the multipolar world. There are also issues on which our interests converge. In our previous meeting, we had both agreed in this regard. The challenge has been to proceed in that direction”.

Jaishankar told his Chinese counterpart that the “disturbance to peace and tranquillity in our border areas has cast a shadow on our ties for the last four years”.

“We have both made considerable efforts to resolve the related issues. Our endeavour is to complete that process and ensure that there is full respect for the Line of Actual Control and the agreements that we have signed in the past. I hope that today’s meeting will allow us to give stronger guidance to our officials in that regard.”

“Insofar as our bilateral ties are concerned, we also agreed that they are best handled through the approach of three mutuals – mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual sensitivity. You will also appreciate that the state of the border will necessarily be reflected on the state of our ties,” he stressed.

He also noted that it was a “volatile and uncertain era” as the “consequences of the Covid pandemic are still in play” and the world is witnessing “conflicts, tensions and polarisations”.

“There have been disruptions to the global economy, both natural and man-made. At this time it is in our mutual interest to stabilise our ties and focus on growth and development that requires us to approach our immediate issues with a sense of purpose and urgency,” Jaishankar said.

The meeting, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement later, gave the two ministers an opportunity to review the situation since their last meeting at Astana in July, with their talks focusing on “finding an early resolution” of the remaining issues along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) to stabilise and rebuild bilateral relations.

“Both ministers agreed on the need to work with purpose and urgency to achieve complete disengagement at the earliest. Peace and tranquillity on the borders and respect for LAC are essential for normalcy in bilateral relations. Both sides must fully abide by relevant bilateral agreements, protocols, and understandings reached between the two Governments in the past,” read the MEA statement.

Both sides will also hold an early meeting of the Working Mechanism on Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC) to take the discussions forward.

–IANS