Beijing: China on Friday called for a "meaningful dialogue" with the Indian government in connection with a border row in the Sikkim sector and asked it to withdraw its troops from Doklam, insisting that Beijing has "indisputable sovereignty" over the area.

"Diplomatic channels are unimpeded between India and China for talks on the standoff in Sikkim," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said.

"The pressing issue is to have a meaningful dialogue for the withdrawal of Indian troops from the Doklam area in Sikkim sector," Kand added.

The reaction from the Chinese Foreign Ministry comes in the wake of a stand-off between the two militaries after the Indian Army blocked construction of the road by China in Doklam, a disputed territory between China and Bhutan also known as Donglong.

Of the 3,488-km-long India-China border from Jammu and Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh, a 220-km section falls in Sikkim.

Lu also refuted Bhutan's allegation that China violated agreements by constructing a road inside its territory

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 In a strongly worded statement, Bhutan had also asked China to stop constructing the motorable road from Dokola in the Doklam area towards the Bhutan Army camp at Zompelri which it says affects the process of demarcating the boundary between the two countries.

But Lu said China had "indisputable sovereignty over the Donklam area." </s> BEIJING: As the standoff in Doklam entered the third month, China on Wednesday renewed its call for India to withdraw troops from the area.Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said withdrawal of troops by India was a precondition for any dialogue between both sides.India is for simultaneous withdrawal of troops from Doklam in Sikkim sector - which is at the tri-junction of India-China-Bhutan.The crisis began on June 16 when the Indian Army prevented Chinese troops from building a road in Doklam.India says the area belongs to close neighbour Bhutan , but Beijing says the area belongs to it and has asked India to stay out of its boundary dispute with Bhutan. </s> BEIJING: China on Thursday reiterated that it won't talk to India until New Delhi withdraws troops from Doklam where both armies have been locked in a stand-off for more than a month.China has repeatedly said the withdrawal of troops from Doklam was the precondition for any "meaningful dialogue" with India over the festering border row in the Sikkim section of the border."Our diplomatic channel is unimpeded and the withdrawal of the Indian border troops is the precondition for any meaningful dialogue and the communication between the two sides," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said at a press conference."The incident that happened in Sikkim section is quite clear that the Indian border troops illegally trespassed into Chinese territory," Lu added.The borders of India, Bhutan and China meet at Doklam, which holds strategic importance to all three.China calls Doklam its own but India and Bhutan call it Bhutanese territory.India, a close ally of Bhutan, stopped the Chinese Army from building a road in Doklam in June, leading to the face-off between New Delhi and Beijing Now both armies are eyeball-to-eyeball at Doklam. India says it wants to resolve the issue diplomatically. </s> New Delhi: India on Thursday made a renewed pitch for a “peaceful resolution” of the Doklam standoff with China through diplomatic channels, insisting that differences should not become disputes. The assertion by New Delhi came on a day China said diplomatic channels remained “unimpeded” to discuss the issue provided India withdraws its troops from Doklam.

Ministry of external affairs (MEA) spokesperson Gopal Baglay told reporters that India has been in “close contact” with the Bhutan government on the unfolding developments, noting that diplomatic channels to resolve the issue with China have not broken off. When referred to China’s demand that status quo be restored in Doklam, he said India has also been asking for it. “There is a certain approach to resolve tri-junction issues and that it should not be altered unilaterally.”

He said Bhutan’s demand to China asking it withdraw its troops from Doklam has also been India’s stance. Baglay said India is for resolving border issues with China peacefully and referred to the understanding between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping during a bilateral meeting in Astana last month that differences between the two countries should not be allowed to become disputes. The two leaders had met in Astana on the sidelines of the summit of Shanghai Organisation Cooperation (SCO).

“Basically, India’s approach has been to find peaceful resolution of all matters concerning the border with China,” he said, adding, “Diplomatic channels are available and not broken off.” Asked about China ratcheting up rhetoric against India, Baglay quoted 15th-century saint Kabir, indicating it was not necessary to take note of everything that has been coming from the Chinese side. “It is obvious that every responsible power, every responsible person and player in the world, of course, prefers peaceful resolution of matters that are in hand,” Baglay said.

Earlier on Thursday, China said diplomatic channels with India remained “unimpeded” to discuss the Doklam standoff but at the same time reiterated that the withdrawal of the Indian troops from the area is a “precondition” for any meaningful dialogue. Asked about China’s comment, Baglay said diplomatic channels remaining available implies that it is a process. The MEA spokesperson also said at least one flag meeting between the two sides had taken place after the face-off, which began on 16 June. “I am aware of flag meeting taking place after June 16. Now whether there was one or more, I am not aware of.” On whether India has briefed other countries on the issue, Baglay said, “It is not appropriate for me to comment on diplomatic discussions and interactions that take place as a regular matter and also on sensitive issues of this nature.”

“I would not like to go into the details of how and what and with whom such conversations have taken place, if they have taken place,” he said. To a question on whether India can explore going to the UN if diplomacy fails to resolve the standoff, Baglay said he cannot reply to hypothetical questions but added, “In a sense you have answered your own question.”

Asked about comments by West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee and her Jammu and Kashmir counterpart Mehbooba Mufti that China could be behind troubles in their states, Baglay evaded a reply and only said cross-border terrorism was the root of the problem in Jammu and Kashmir. Baglay also confirmed that national security advisor Ajit Doval will travel to Beijing to attend a Brics meeting on 27 and 28 July. </s> In the midst of face off between India and Chinese troops over road construction on the borders of a plateau in Bhutan, which China has been claiming, has said that the withdrawal from the Doklam plateau by the Indian troops was prerequisite for any dialogue between two nations and prevent escalation, Indian Express report said.

It warned Army chief General Bipin Rawat to “stop clamouring for war”, calling it as “extremely irresponsible” of his recent statement saying India was ready for a “two-and-a-half front war”. Speaking to reporters, PLA spokesperson Col Wu Qian, said China hoped “particular person in the Indian Army could learn from historical lessons and stop such clamouring for war.”

“Bhutan has conveyed to the Chinese side, both on the ground and through the diplomatic channel, that the construction of the road inside Bhutanese territory is a direct violation of the agreements and affects the process of demarcating the boundary between our two countries. Bhutan hopes that the status quo in the Doklam area will be maintained as before 16 June 2017”, Bhutan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs was quoted as saying by Indian Express as saying.

Thimphu said in statement on June 16, “the Chinese Army started constructing a motorable road from Dokola in the Doklam area towards the Bhutan Army camp at Zompelri”. It said boundary talks are ongoing between Bhutan and China and “we have written agreements of 1988 and 1998 stating that the two sides agree to maintain peace and tranquility in their border areas pending a final settlement on the boundary question, and to maintain status quo on the boundary as before March 1959. The agreements also state that the two sides will refrain from taking unilateral action, or use of force, to change the status quo of the boundary.”

However, China has maintained that Doklam has been a part of China since earlier times, which is an “indisputable fact supported by historical evidence and the ground situation. China’s activities in Doklam are acts of sovereignty on its own territory. It is completely justified and lawful.” </s> Troops from China’s People’s Liberation Army continue to deploy construction equipment in an effort to drive a dirt track through the strategic Doklam plateau despite a three week stand-off with the Indian Army and the Royal Bhutan Army, senior Indian government officials said on Friday. The PLA’s road works, the officials said, are aimed at bringing a road close to Doka La, India’s last military post on the junction of its boundary with Bhutan and China.

Both sides have reinforced their positions amidst a continuing war of words between Beijing and New Delhi. Indian military officials rejected claims that there were signs of imminent conflict in the region — the site of intense skirmishes in 1967, provoked by similar disputes over border works.

In first official comments on the crisis, New Delhi admitted that its troops had blocked PLA road works inside Bhutan territory claimed by China, saying “such construction would represent a significant change of status quo with serious security implications for India”.

India and Bhutan, the government said, have been in “continuous contact” over the Doklam developments. “In coordination with the Bhutanese government, Indian personnel, who were present at general area Doka La, approached the Chinese construction party and urged them to desist from changing the status quo… these efforts continue,” a government statement said.

It said the matter has been “under discussion” at the diplomatic level, both in New Delhi and Beijing. Sources said that Indian ambassador Vijay Gokhale had conveyed India’s concerns in Beijing, while senior officials in the Ministry of External Affairs have reached out to their Chinese counterparts. “It was also the subject of a Border Personnel Meeting at Nathu La on 20 June,” the government said.

The Indian side has underlined that the two governments had agreed in 2012 that the tri-junction boundary points between India, China and third countries will be finalised in consultation with the countries concerned. “Any attempt, therefore, to unilaterally determine tri-junction points is in violation of this understanding,” it said.

In Beijing, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Lu Kang said diplomatic channels with India were “unimpeded” for “meaningful talks” over the military stand-off but maintained that Indian troops must first withdraw from the Doklam area over which Beijing has “indisputable sovereignty”. He said Indian troops “trespassed” the recognised delineated boundary between China and India on June 18.

Donglong (the name China uses for Doklam), he said, had been a traditional pasture for Tibetan residents. “We have exercised good administration over the area and before the 1960s, people from Bhutan required consent from China for cattle grazing and the Tibetan archives still have receipts of the same,” Lu said.

“Frankly, this crisis has surprised the government”, a senior Indian diplomatic official said, “coming after what New Delhi had seen as a willingness on China’s part to iron out problems in the relationship. During their recent summit meeting in Astana, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had told President Xi Jinping that we did not want differences to want disputes, and he agreed”.

Bhutan’s Army, Indian military sources said, has remained in close touch with their Indian counterparts, but has not operationally deployed in the effort to push back Chinese road-building in Doklam. “Bhutan is in a very uncomfortable position,” a diplomat said. “It is acutely sensitive about the intrusion on its sovereignty, but also does not want a crisis to break out”.

The Doklam plateau was first claimed by China in the late 1950s, in the build-up to its 1962 war with India. Ever since 1988, PLA patrols have regularly cut past Bhutan’s claim line, the Sinche La ridge, using a network of dirt tracks which lead up to Chele La post, the country’s permanent position on the Zompelri ridge, which leads westward from India’s Doka La post.

Indian government sources said the ongoing crisis began on June 16, when the PLA moved a substantial earthmoving unit on to the Doklam plateau, and began building a road leading towards Doka La. Royal Bhutan Army soldiers from the Zompelri ridge, the sources said, attempted to intervene, but were pushed back on to the ridge.

However, in response to a request from the beleaguered Bhutanese troops, Indian soldiers on Doka La moved down the ridge, and obstructed the border works, leading to a stand-off.

Indian Army sources said this confrontation had been preceded by a scuffle between a PLA road construction unit and Indian troops on the night June 4-5, which had resulted in minor injuries to two Chinese personnel. China then used earthmoving equipment to demolish a two-decade-old earth-and-rock bunker near Doka La, at a position Indian soldiers refer to as Laltain.

Troops, military sources said, are now located on either side of a position in Chinese-claimed Bhutanese territory below Doka La, called Turning Point, in a face-to-face position, using banners and loud-hailers to assert their claims.

“No pushing and shoving is taking place”, a government official insisted. “The video that has been doing the rounds is archival, not from the current crisis, and completely misrepresents the situation.”

New Delhi, an Indian diplomat said, has told Beijing that its construction works mark an effort to unilaterally determine a three-country junction marked a violation of written accords arrived at between special representatives of the two governments.

In addition, New Delhi has rejected Beijing’s claims, made in statements by its Foreign Ministry, that the India-China boundary in Sikkim is settled, noting that the two countries have yet to agree to demarcation of their borders.

Beijing’s growing assertiveness in the region, experts say, could be aimed at pushing Bhutan to agree to swap Doklam — a springboard for potential Indian strikes on China’s road and future rail links north to Lhasa — for other territory it has asserted claims to in the north.

Though both sides appear committed to avoid any escalation of the stand-off, the history of the 1967 crisis in the Chumbi Valley — the same territory now at stake — shows disputes over border construction can have serious outcomes. In that case, India responded to Chinese trench construction on its side of the boundary by laying a barbed-wire fence, leading the PLA to open fire with machine guns.

Indian Army units, well positioned on high ground above the Sebu La pass, were able to bring down accurate artillery fire, destroying several bunkers and inflicting large numbers of casualties. Later that year, a scuffle on the Cho La pass again led to clashes, in which the PLA was pushed back three kilometres. The initial attack, scholar Taylor Fravel recorded, was not authorised by China’s all-powerful Central Military Commission, and then Premier Zhou Enlai subsequently ordered the PLA not to open fire unless fired upon.

For all the latest India News, download Indian Express App </s> Amid the standoff at Doklam plateau in Sikkim sector between Indian and Chinese troops, India on Friday told Bhutan to not get intimidated by Beijing’s angry rhetoric, even as Bhutan urged New Delhi to amicably resolve the border stand-off with China. The sources at a meeting of BIMSTEC nations told The Indian Express that these were the broad contours of the discussion between Indian and Bhutanese leaders and officials. Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal are members of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC).

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj also met her Bhutanese counterpart Damcho Dorji. This was the minister-level meeting between Bhutan and India ever since the genesis of the Doklam border stand-off in June. The sources also added that both India and Bhutan discussed the Doklam issue and exchanged notes on the “way forward”. Dorji said after the meeting: “We hope the situation in Doklam will be resolved peacefully and amicably.” He stayed away from giving specific details. Also Read: Don’t be intimidated by China: India to Bhutan

India behaving like mature power in Doklam standoff, says US expert

A top American defence expert has opined that India is “behaving like a mature power” in the Doklam standoff and making China look like an adolescent throwing a tamper tantrum. Professor of strategy at US Naval War College James R Holmes said: “New Delhi has done things right thus far, neither backing away from the dispute nor replying in kind to Beijing’s over-the-top rhetoric. It is behaving as the mature power and making China look like the adolescent throwing a temper tantrum.”

Army raises alert level in Arunachal Pradesh as Chinese officials meet US counterparts

As China continues to engage in belligerent rhetoric over the Doklam standoff, the Indian Army has cautiously put its units in Arunachal Pradesh on a higher alert, putting some troops in the state ahead of their usual locations but still short of the Chinese border.

Sources revealed to the The Indian Express that, as a precautionary measure, many units of the Dimpaur-headquartered 3 Corps and Tezpur-headquartered 4 Corps have been placed on “higher alert in a No War No Peace mode”.

The sources also emphasised that these measures are not related to to any major build-up of China’s military in Tibet. The Indian side has not observed any major movement of China’s military so far. The Indian Express had reported earlier that in the eastern sector, Army units in Sikkim have already been staged forward as they undertake their Operational Alert this month which has been advanced from October. Also Read: Cautiously, Army raises alert level in Arunachal Pradesh as Chinese officials meet US counterparts

China, India must work to resolve Doklam standoff, says US commander

A top American commander said today that the ongoing Doklam standoff between Indian and Chinese troops is a matter of concern, even as he asked both countries to work together and resolve the issue diplomatically. India and China have been locked in a face-off in the Doklam area for more than 50 days after Indian troops stopped the Chinese People’s Liberation Army from building a road in the area.

Commander of the US Pacific Command Admiral Harry B Harris echoed the State Department’s view that the US encourages the two countries to resolve their differences diplomatically. In a statement to PTI, Admiral Harris said “Well, I think that any time you have two great powers at odds across a common border, that’s an area of concern. Of course, it’s potentially dangerous.”

“But I think that I would echo those sentiments of our own government leaders, America’s national leadership, that we encourage both India and China to engage in diplomacy, to help reduce these tensions,” Admiral Harris added.

Chinese Navy eyes Indian Ocean as part of PLA’s plan to extend its reach amid Doklam standoff

Amid the ongoing Doklam standoff, Chinese Navy has reached out to India to maintain security China in Indian Ocean amid increasing concerns in New Delhi over the growing presence of the PLA fleet in India’s backyard. In a first, People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) threw open its strategic South Sea Fleet (SSF) base in the coastal city of Zhanjiang to a group of Indian journalists. “It is my opinion China and India can make joint contributions to the safety and security of the Indian Ocean,” Capt Liang Tianjun, Deputy Chief of General Office of China’s SSF said. His remarks came as China’s Navy embarked on a massive expansion to extend its global reach. Also Read: Chinese Navy eyes Indian Ocean as part of PLA’s plan to extend its reach

Indian and Chinese troops have been engaged in a stand-off in the Doklam area of the Sikkim sector for seven weeks now after Indian troops stopped the Chinese army from building a road in the disputed area. China claimed that they were constructing the road within their territory and has been demanding immediate pull-out of the Indian troops from the disputed Doklam plateau. New Delhi has expressed concern over the road building, apprehending that it may allow Chinese troops to cut India’s access to its northeastern states.

India has conveyed to the Chinese government that the road construction would represent a significant change of status quo with serious security implications for it. Doka La is the Indian name for the region which Bhutan recognises as Doklam, while China claims it as part of its Donglang region.

Of the 3,488-km-long India-China border from Jammu and Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh, a 220-km section falls in Sikkim. China also claims that Thimphu has no dispute with Beijing over Doklam.

For all the latest India News, download Indian Express App </s> China yesterday said the diplomatic channels with India are "unimpeded" for "meaningful talks" over the military stand-off in the Sikkim sector but maintained that Indian troops must first withdraw from the Doklam area over which Beijing has "indisputable sovereignty".

"The diplomatic channels for the communication between Chinese and Indian sides remained unimpeded," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told a media briefing.

He said the Indian troops "trespassed" the recognised delineated boundary between China and India on June 18. This is the first time China came out the with precise date about Indian troops entering the disputed Doklam area (referred by China as Donglong) near Sikkim allegedly to stop Chinese troops from constructing a road. "So the most pressing issue should be the withdrawal of troops into the Indian territory. So it is the pre-condition for any meaningful dialogue," he said when asked whether any talks were going on between the two countries over the issue.

Meeting over issue

A high-level meeting yesterday reviewed the situation in the Sikkim sector. The meeting was attended by Army Chief Gen. Bipin Rawat, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar among others. </s> New Delhi: Japan came out in full support for India in its protracted military stand-off with China at Doklam, near the Sikkim-Tibet-Bhutan trijunction, saying no country should use unilateral forces to change the status quo on the ground.

Acknowledging the situation at the Doklam Plateau, Japanese Ambassador to India Kenji Hiramatsu said, “We recognise Doklam is a disputed area between Bhutan and China and the two countries are engaged in border talks. We also understand that India has a treaty understanding with Bhutan, that’s why Indian troops got involved in the area,” according to the local media.

The endorsement of the Indian position by Japan is a significant development at a regional level as China has violated agreements with Japan as well and not with only India and Bhutan. It is pertinent to mention that Japan is also engaged with the sovereignty issue with China over East China sea. The Bhutanese Government had earlier told ANI over phone, “Our position on the border issue of Doklam is very clear.”

Reacting to the developments in Doklam, the Bhutanese Government had on June 29 issued a press release in which it clearly stated that the construction of the road inside the Bhutanese territory is a direct violation of the agreements and affects the process of demarcating the boundary between the two countries.

China is attempting to build a road through Doklam plateau, which is part of Bhutan, a development that would be a serious disadvantage to India’s military defences. Meanwhile, as the Doklam stand-off is approcahing its second month, China’s Foreign Ministry has reiterated that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) troops would continue to defend Dong Lang, which is Chinese territory, and India should withdraw all its troops and equipment from there.

The stand-off began when China started constructing a road in the area. India objected to the road construction after the Chinese troops ignored Bhutanese protests, triggering the faceoff from June 16. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj has reiterated that India’s road map is peace and talks are going on to resolve the issue diplomatically. India has made its stance clear that that it stands for peace the border question can be solved diplomatically, not by war.
China informs India that it must withdraw its troops for any dialogue to occur as tensions rise between China and India and Bhutan over the disputed territory of Doklam.