China, India discuss ways to find peace on disputed border
Pending final resolution of decades-long row, nations agree need to ‘maintain peace and tranquillity’ in contested areas
China and India on Friday discussed ways to prevent a repeat of their recent military stand-off on a Himalayan plateau where their borders meet and agreed that resolving their boundary disagreements served the interests of both countries.
Relations between the two Asian giants have often been strained, partly due to an undemarcated border. They fought a month-long border war in 1962 and have been trying to settle the boundary since the 1980s.
The two sides agreed on Friday that pending the final resolution of the issue, it was necessary to maintain peace and tranquillity in border areas, according to a statement by India’s External Affairs Ministry released at the end of the day-long talks.
The Indian side was led by National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and the Chinese delegation by Special Representative Yang Jiechi. The two had met in Beijing in July on the sidelines of a meeting of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit.