Beijing, Aug 16 (PTI) China said today that it was not aware of the reports of PLA soldiers entering Indian territory along the banks of the Pangong lake in Ladakh and maintained that it was committed to peace and tranquillity along the border. Indian border guards yesterday foiled an attempt by Chinese soldiers to enter Indian territory in Ladakh, resulting in stone pelting that caused minor injuries to people on both sides. Asked to comment on the incident,Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said, “I am not aware of the information I can tell you that the Chinese border troops are always committed to maintain peace and tranquillity of the India-China border.” “We always patrol in the Chinese side along the Line of Actual Control. We urge the Indian side to abide by the LAC (Line of Actual Control) and relevant conventions between the two sides,” she said. In the past too, whenever such incursions have taken place, China has always maintained that its troops were patrolling the Chinese side of the border highlighting that border is yet to be delineated as the two countries were in the process of resolving the boundary dispute. Special Representatives of China and India have held 19 rounds of talks to resolve the boundary issue. Asked whether there is any progress to resolve the standoff at the Doklam area in the Sikkim section which has now entered the third month, Hua reiterated China’s stand that Indian troops illegally trespassed into Chinese territory and they should unconditionally withdraw. “This is pre-condition for any meaningful talks between the two sides,” she said. However, China has been acknowledging that the talks are on through the diplomatic channels to discuss the issue. Of the 3,488-km-long India-China border from Jammu and Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh, a 220-km section falls in Sikkim. PTI
