Violation of agreements eroded bilateral ties, Rajnath Singh tells Chinese counterpart

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday told his Chinese counterpart Li Shangfu that violation of existing agreements between the two countries has eroded the entire basis of bilateral ties.

The two leaders held a discussion after Li arrived in New Delhi to attend a meeting of defence ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, which is being hosted by India on April 28.

This is the first visit by a Chinese defence minister since the militaries of the two nations clashed in Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh in June 2020 in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed. China had put the number of casualties on its side at four. The two countries have been locked in a border standoff since then.

Held discussions with China’s Defence Minister, General Li Shangfu in New Delhi. https://t.co/Pd5mFnrbhH pic.twitter.com/zmU0uXVR8D— Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) April 27, 2023

Cross-border tensions escalated once again on December 9, after Indian and Chinese troops clashed in the Tawang sector of Arunachal Pradesh. New Delhi said that the clash took place after Chinese soldiers attempted to change the status quo at the Line of Actual Control.

The Indian and Chinese armies have so far held 18 rounds of military talks on resolving the border row.

On Thursday, the Ministry of Defence in a statement said Singh and Li held “frank discussions”...

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