Talks between India and China have been underway but no success has been achieved yet, said Union Defence Ministry Rajnath Singh on Thursday, adding that the next round of talks on military level between the two countries may be conducted anytime.
During an interview with news agency ANI, Singh said that the impasse between New Delhi and Beijing continues as there has been no “meaningful outcome” despite several rounds of talks between the two countries. “No meaningful outcome has come and there is a status-quo. I don’t think the status-quo is a positive development. If there is status quo, it is natural how deployment can be reduced. There will be no reduction in our deployment and I feel their deployment will also not reduce. Our expectation is that talks result in a positive outcome.”
Amid the India-China standoff, nearly 50,000 troops of the Indian Army are currently deployed in a high state of combat readiness in various mountainous locations in eastern Ladakh in sub-zero conditions as multiple rounds of talks between the two sides have not yielded concrete outcome to resolve the standoff. China has also deployed an equal number of troops, according to officials.
The Union Defence Minister went on to berate the neighbouring country over its “expansionism” and said that India has the “strength, capability and power to not let its land go into anyone’s hand, whether it is any country of the world”.
“India has a sharp focus. ‘Jo hume chedega hum usse chhorenge nahi’ (Any one who meddles with us will not be let them go). We want to maintain peaceful relations with all nations,” Singh said on being asked if this year’s incident at the Ladakh border was a result of possible collusion between China and Pakistan.
“I do not want to question previous governments but I can say that ever since PM Modi took office, national security has been a number one priority and we are providing maximum facilities to our defence forces,” he added.
Hitting out at Pakistan, Singh said that the belligerent neighbor has been “indulging in nefarious actions along the border since its inception”. “Our soldiers have proved that not only this side, but to eliminate terrorism they can go to other side and attack terrorist hideouts if the need arises. India has that capability,” he said.
India will not tolerate anything that hurts its self-respect. Being soft does not mean that anyone can attack our pride and we sit and watch silently. India will not compromise on its pride. China has been doing a lot of infrastructure development in its border areas. India is also developing infrastructure at a fast pace for people at the border and for soldiers there. We are not developing infrastructure to attack any country but for our people,” he said.
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