Mr. Singh shook hands with all of the defence ministers in his bilateral meetings, with the exception of Mr. Li. The other full members of the grouping are Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Pakistan.
Source: Hindustan Times
A meeting that revealed the enormous gap between the neighbours on the issue of peace on the LAC, where China is thought to have encroached several kilometres into what India believes is its territory since the hostilities in 2020, was set up by this chilly reception.
Mr. Li characterised the de facto border region as fairly stable. Mr. Singh, however, was more direct. He claimed that Chinese activities had damaged the relationship’s confidence. In order to improve relations, he said, both sides must disengage from the border area, where they have gathered soldiers.
The views of the relationship that India has officially expressed and that the external affairs minister, S. Jaishankar, has regularly stressed are echoed in Mr. Singh’s remarks. However, it is difficult to ignore the defeatist undertone that permeates India’s statements and the reality of its relations with China.
Uncomfortably, it would seem that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi administration has no strategy in place to exert pressure on China to return the situation along the LAC to its pre-2020 state. It also seems to have few solutions for Beijing’s rising military and economic asymmetry. Mr. Jaishankar had also expressed doubts in a February interview about India’s capacity to compete with China, citing the latter’s larger economy.
Source: The Indian Express
While Beijing has made it clear that business as usual with New Delhi is not possible, China’s trade with India, which is heavily skewed in favour of the larger country, is reaching record highs. India will shortly receive the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, as it serves as both the SCO chair and the G20 president this year. If India’s resistance to China is limited to not shaking hands, Beijing won’t be motivated to modify its methods.
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