Previous offers by Trump to mediate between India & Pakistan were firmly ignored which asserted that there was no role for any 3rd party in bilateral issues.
New Delhi| On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump offered to mediate between India and China to settle the ‘raging’ border dispute in the Ladakh sector that have intensified tensions over the few weeks.
“We have informed both India and China that the United States is ready, willing and able to mediate or arbitrate their now raging border dispute. Thank you!” Trump wrote on Twitter.
On Tuesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping ordered Chinese forces to strengthen the training of troops and to be ready for war amid COVID-19 pandemic’s visible impact on the planet’s most populous country’s national security.
It was necessary to “comprehensively strengthen the training of troops and prepare for war”, “resolutely safeguard national sovereignty” and “safeguard the overall strategic stability of the country”, state media reported the Chinese supreme leader as saying.
This comes amid growing tension with the United States, repeated references by local politicians and diplomats of reunifying Taiwan if required by force, and the likely imposing of a new and controversial security law meant to crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in the special administrative region of Hong Kong.
The tension between India And China is also intensifying with troops from both countries clashing in different areas along the 3,488 kilometre-long disputed border especially, in Ladakh, since May 5.
Six rounds of talks between Indian and Chinese troops since the first border skirmish on May 5 remained unsettled and Beijing warned of “necessary counter-measures”.
The Chinese troops have particularly increased its presence along the LAC alarming Modi government to stabilize the issue.
Also Read: Prepare For War: President Xi Jinping Tells Chinese Army
In 2017, the troops of India and China were engaged in a 73-day stand-off in Doklam tri-junction (India, China, Bhutan) which even triggered fears of a war between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.
PM Modi and Xi Jinping held an informal summit in Mamallapuram near Chennai in October last year with a focus on further expanding bilateral ties.
On May 22, China, the second-largest military spender after the US, hiked its defence budget by 6.6% to $179 billion, almost three times that of India.
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