Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met his Chinese counterpart Dong Jun in Laos
NEW DELHI, Nov 20: India and China on Wednesday agreed to work towards a roadmap for rebuilding mutual trust and understanding with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh calling for drawing lessons from the “unfortunate border clashes” of 2020 during talks with his Chinese counterpart Dong Jun.
The two defence ministers met in Vientiane, the capital city of Laos, weeks after Indian and Chinese militaries completed disengagement of troops from two last face-off points in eastern Ladakh.
The defence ministry said both sides agreed to work together towards a roadmap for rebuilding mutual trust and understanding.
In the delegation-level talks, Singh highlighted that amicable relations between India and China would have positive implications for global peace and prosperity, it said.
“Considering that both countries are and will continue to remain neighbours, he mentioned that ‘we need to focus on cooperation rather than conflict’,” it said.
Singh called for reflecting on the lessons learnt from the unfortunate border clashes of 2020, taking measures to prevent the recurrence of such events and safeguarding peace and tranquility along the India-China border, the ministry said in a statement.
“He emphasised and looked forward to greater trust and confidence building between the two sides through de-escalation. Both sides agreed to work together towards a roadmap for rebuilding mutual trust and understanding,” it added.
The Singh-Dong meeting took place on the sidelines of a conclave of 10-nation ASEAN grouping and some of its dialogue partners.
Indian and Chinese militaries completed the disengagement exercise in Demchok and Depsang in eastern Ladakh late last month after the two sides reached an agreement following a series of negotiations to resolve the festering border row. (PTI)
