Sun Weidong, Ambassador to India, Received Interview with Indian Press Trust for Incidents in Wanal Valley, India
On June 25, Ambassador Sun Weidong was interviewed by the Indian Press Trust (PTI), India’s largest news agency, to answer reporters’ questions on the Calvin Valley in China, India and India. Li Ya, Political Counselor of the Embassy and Ji Rong, Counsellor of the Press, were present. The main contents of the interview are as follows:
Q: Thank you for accepting my interview. What do you think of the Calvin Valley incident?
A: Recently, Sino-Indian border defense forces suffered serious physical clashes in the Garwan Valley in the western part of the border, causing casualties. This is what China does not want to see. The incident was completely provoked by the Indian side, and the responsibility lies not with China. I would like to take this opportunity to clarify China's views and positions:
First, the location of the incident was on the Chinese side of the actual control line along the Sino-Indian border, with India crossing the line first. The Calvin River Valley is located on the Chinese side of the real control line. The local control situation is very clear, and the two sides have basically been in peace for decades. However, since this year, the Indian side has carried out construction in the Calvin River Valley and crossed the border, constantly changing the actual status of local control. On May 6, the Indian border defense forces crossed the actual control line into the Chinese territory in the Galevan Valley area at night, resorted to violent means to create a stalemate between the two sides, and built facilities in an attempt to stay for a long time.
Second, India’s violation of consensus led to an escalation of the situation, and India’s provocations came first. After the confrontation in early May, China made multiple representations to the Indian side through military and diplomatic channels. The Indian side agreed and evacuated the people across the line and dismantled the facilities across the line. On June 6, the two sides held military-level talks. The Indian side promised not to patrol and build facilities at the mouth of the Galwan River. The two sides agreed to establish observation posts on both sides of the mouth of the Galwan River. However, since then, the Indian border guards have regretted the consensus reached at the military-level meeting between the two sides and unreasonably demanded that the Chinese side dismantle the established observation post, and once again crossed the actual control line to challenge the Chinese side, triggering the conflict. event.
Third, the violent attack by the Indian side on Chinese personnel led to an increase in the situation, and the Indian side beat the others first. On the evening of June 15, the first-line troops of the Indian side violated the consensus reached at the military-level talks between the two sides and once again crossed the actual control line to destroy the Chinese tent set up here. When the Chinese border guards and soldiers made representations in accordance with the practice of handling border incidents, the Indian army suddenly and violently attacked the officers and soldiers who went to the negotiations, resulting in fierce physical conflicts between the two sides, resulting in deaths.
Fourth, the Indian side violated a series of agreements reached by the two countries. The Indian side violated the agreement first. There are rules for China and India to maintain peace and tranquility in the border areas. The first article of the "Agreement on Maintaining Peace and Tranquility in the Area of the Line of Actual Control of the Sino-Indian Border" in 1993, and the article The second article clearly stipulates the activities of both parties in the vicinity of the actual control line. What the Indian side did is not in line with the spirit of the above agreement.
Q: How do you think the current situation is resolved?
A: The truth of this incident is very clear, and the responsibility lies not with China. The Indian side provoked and attacked the Chinese border guards across the line, seriously violating the agreement reached by the two countries on the border issues, and also seriously violating the basic norms of international relations. China demands that the Indian side conduct a thorough investigation, severely punish those responsible for the incident, strictly restrain the front-line troops, and immediately stop all provocative actions to ensure that such incidents cannot occur again.
Currently, China and India are communicating through military and diplomatic channels to ease the situation. Not long ago, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Indian Foreign Minister Su Jiesheng spoke on the phone. The two sides agreed to deal fairly with the serious situation caused by the conflict in the Gallevan Valley, jointly abide by the consensus reached at the military-level meeting between the two sides, and cool the situation on the spot as soon as possible. The agreement reached so far maintains peace and tranquility in the border areas. From June 22nd to 23rd, the two sides held the second round of military-level talks and continued to discuss the current state of affairs. On June 24, the China-India Border Affairs Consultation and Coordination Working Mechanism, led by the directors of the two foreign ministries, also held a meeting to communicate on related issues.
Q: What do you think of the prospect of solving this problem?
Answer: Both China and India have the will and ability to properly control their differences. At present, the situation in the border area between China and India is generally stable and controllable. China expects India to move towards each other, avoid actions that would complicate the situation on the border, and take practical actions to maintain stability in the border area.
Both China and India are large developing countries and emerging economies with a population of more than 1 billion, and both shoulder the historical mission of realizing their own development and revitalization. As State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi pointed out in a call with Foreign Minister Su Jiesheng, mutual respect and mutual support between China and India are the right path, which is in the long-term interests of the two countries; mutual suspicion and mutual friction are evil roads, contrary to the fundamental aspirations of the two peoples. We are willing to work together with the Indian side to properly handle the current situation under the guidance of the important consensus spirit of the leaders of the two countries, jointly maintain peace and stability in the border area, and promote the healthy and stable development of relations between the two countries.