India and China are locked in a lingering border dispute along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh leading to frosty bilateral ties between the two nations.
India on Saturday said it will continue to make efforts to normalise bilateral relations with China even as New Delhi thanked Beijing for extending their congratulations to Prime Minister-designate on his victory in the recently-concluded Lok Sabha Elections.
Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, while replying to to a congratulatory message to Modi posted by the Chinese Foreign Ministry on X, said India would continue to make efforts for normalisation of the bilateral ties based on “mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual sensitivity”.
“Thank you @MFA_China for congratulating PM @narendramodi on his election victory. Will continue to pursue efforts towards normalisation of India-China ties based on mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual sensitivity,” Jaiswal wrote.
The MEA spokesperson’s comments come amidst the backdrop deteriorating ties between the two countries in wake of a bitter border dispute along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh even as India has consistently maintained that peace and tranquillity along the LAC were key for normalisation of overall ties.
China congratulates Modi
On June 5, the spokesperson of the Chinese foreign ministry said: “Congratulations to Prime Minister @narendramodi, BJP and the National Democratic Alliance on the election victory. We look forward to a healthy & stable China-India relationship.”
Leaders of four out of five P-5 countries have congratulated Modi on winning a third term. However, there is no congratulatory message yet from Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The permanent members of the UN Security Council, Russia, the United Kingdom, the United States, China and France are known as P5 nations.
The Indian and Chinese militaries have been locked in a standoff since May 2020 and a full resolution of the border row has not yet been achieved though the two sides have disengaged from a number of friction points.
(With PTI inputs)