China unusually aggressive on Sikkim stand-off: Foreign Secretary briefs MPs

The Foreign Secretary assured a parliamentary committee on External Affairs that India is using diplomatic channels to defuse the crisis.

China's approach to the stand-off at Sikkim that began last month is unusually aggressive, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar told a group of MPs on Tuesday which included senior opposition leaders including Rahul Gandhi.

The Foreign Secretarymaintained that New Delhi is engaged with Beijing in defusing tension through diplomatic channels. The comments were relayed to reporters by some of the 20 members who were present in the meeting.

The foreign secretary told the panel that India has clearly outlined its position on the border and Chinese have their own position, but they are misinterpreting it so India was trying to clarify it.

He said that India has been maintaining the same position since 1895 as per an Anglo-Chinese agreement.

The standoff between Indian and Chinese armies have continued for a month over the construction of a road by China near the tri junction. India has expressed concern over the road construction near the trijunction, fearing it may allow Chinese troops to cut India's access to its northeastern states. It has conveyed to China that the road construction would represent a significant change of status quo with serious security implications for India.

According to the Chinese interpretation of events, Indian soldiers crossed into China's Donglang region early in June and obstructed work on a road on the plateau it calls Donglang. Bhutan says the land, which it calls Doklam, belongs to its kingdom and not to China, a claim India agrees with. India also says it had warned China that the road was a serious security concern - it gives Beijing access to the so-called Chicken's Neck, a thin strip of land that links India with its seven north eastern states.

Last week, a meeting was called by the government to brief opposition parties on the issue.

The government had told opposition leaders that China is constructing roads near the international border, hampering the country's strategic interests. It said National Security Advisor Ajit Doval would put forward New Delhi's position before his Chinese counterparts later this month.

OneIndia News