'Everybody wants to get along with their neighbour, but...': Jaishankar slams China for disregarding border pacts with India

New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Saturday (August 21, 2022) slammed China for disregarding the border pacts with India and casting a shadow on the bilateral ties as he asserted that a lasting relationship cannot be a "one-way street" and that there has to be mutual respect. While responding to a question on Sino-India ties, Jaishankar also said that India and China have agreements going back to the 1990s which prohibit bringing troops to the border area.

"They (Chinese) have disregarded that. You know what happened in the Galwan Valley a few years ago. That problem has not been resolved and that is clearly casting a shadow," Jaishankar, who was the Indian Ambassador to China from 2009 to 2013, said.

Jaishankar, who arrived in Brazil's Sao Paulo on the first leg of his six-day visit to South America, made the remarks during his interaction with the Indian community.

Began my Latin American visit by meeting the Indian community in Sao Paulo.

Shared with them the progress and optimism as India completes 75 years of Independence. pic.twitter.com/BcjYOBWOBJ — Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) August 21, 2022

The Indian and Chinese troops have been engaged in a prolonged standoff in Eastern Ladakh. The two sides have also held 16 rounds of Corps Commander Level talks to resolve the standoff which erupted on May 5, 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong lake areas.

"They are our neighbour and everybody wants to get along with their neighbour...But everybody wants to get along with their neighbour on reasonable terms. I must respect you and you must respect me," Jaishankar said.

Relationships are a two-way street

Jaishankar also said that a relationship cannot be a one-way street and mutual respect has to be there in order to sustain it.

"From our point of view, we've been very clear that if you have to build a relationship, then there has to be mutual respect. Each one will have their interests and we need to be sensitive to what the concerns are of the other party," he stated.

"Relationships are a two-way street. A lasting relationship cannot be a one-way street. We need that mutual respect and mutual sensitivity," the External Affairs Minister said, adding that it is no secret we are going through a very difficult phase.

Earlier last week, Jaishankar had said that the relationship between India and China is going through an "extremely difficult phase" after what Beijing has done at the border and emphasised that the Asian Century will not happen if the two neighbours could not join hands.

"We very much hope that wisdom dawns on the Chinese side," he had said while replying to a question from the audience in Bangkok.

India faces challenge to ensure its economic interests amid Russia-Ukraine war

While addressing the Indian community in Sao Paulo, S Jaishankar also said that India faces a challenge to ensure that its economic interests are well protected and its consumers are shielded to the extent possible from the enormous jump in the oil prices in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. He stated that what the Russia-Ukraine war has done in terms of impacting India's energy security is something which is of concern.

"We have a challenge, which is we have to ensure through diplomacy, through dealings with various governments that our economic interests are well protected and the Indian consumer is shielded to the extent possible from this enormous jump in oil prices," Jaishankar said while defending India's move to buy discounted Russian oil.

The minister noted that the world is globalised and that something happens in one corner of the world and everybody else is impacted by it. 

There has been a very strong level of commitment to ensure that India's national interests in regard to energy are somehow met, he added.

: https://t.co/GYDwtX0htG — Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) August 21, 2022

Jaishankar has repeatedly defended India's decision to buy discounted Russian oil amid Moscow's ongoing war with Ukraine, saying many suppliers of India have diverted their supplies to Europe, which is buying less oil from Russia.

Jaishankar's official visit to Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina

S Jaishankar is paying an official visit to Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina between August 22-27. This is External Affairs Minister's first visit to the South American region. During the visit, in addition to bilateral engagements with his counterparts, EAM will call on the top leadership in all three countries.

​"EAM's visit to these 3 countries will provide an opportunity to continue the ongoing high-level engagements with our partners in LAC, explore new areas of cooperation in the post-pandemic era, and exchange views on issues of bilateral and international significance," the Ministry of External Affairs said.

(With agency inputs)