Defence Minister Rajnath Singh On China “The Matter Should Get Resolved But To What Extent… Can’t Guarantee”

The Defence Minister is on a two-day visit to Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir. CDS General Bipin Rawat and Army CG MM Naravane were seen accompanying him

NEW DELHI| India-China talks should resolve the border dispute, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said this afternoon as he interacted with the troops in Ladakh, adding the extent of the success, however, “cannot be guaranteed”. The Defence Minister landed in Ladakh this morning, over a month after the June 15 clash with China in which 20 soldiers were killed in the line of duty.

Rajnath Singh told the troops as he visited the Lukung post near Pangong Lake, “Whatever talks have happened so far, the matter should get resolved… but to what extent it would be resolved, I cannot guarantee. However, I want to assure you that not an inch of our land can be taken by any power in the world.”

The Lukung post is in the northwestern side of lake, 43 km by road from the Finger 4 area, where the troops of India and China are in the process of disengagement. Lukung is a combined post, where the Indian Army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police are stationed.

The Defence Minister is on a two-day visit to Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir. In visuals, Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and Army chief General MM Naravane were seen accompanying him.

आज सुबह लद्दाख़ पहुँच कर सीमावर्ती इलाक़ों का दौरा किया और लुकुंग चौकी पर जाकर भारतीय सेना के जाँबाज़ जवानों एवं अधिकारियों के दर्शन करते हुए उनसे बातचीत करने का अवसर मिला। pic.twitter.com/LTXKwbfSzX

— Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) July 17, 2020

The Defence Minister said today during his address, “India is the only country in the world that has given a message of peace to the world. We have never attacked a nation and have never staked claim to any country’s land. India believes in the message ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam‘ (world is one family).”

“We do not want unrest, we want peace. It has not been our nature to hurt any country’s pride. If any attempt is made to hurt India’s pride, it won’t be tolerated… we will give a befitting reply,” Mr Singh said.

Mr Singh further added, “We are proud of our army. I feel proud as I stand among our jawans. Our jawans have laid their lives for the country. All 130 crore Indians are saddened by the loss.”

After reviewing operational preparedness on the Line of Actual Control the de facto border between India and China Mr Singh flew to Srinagar to review the situation on Line of Control. Mr Singh was earlier scheduled to visit Ladakh on July 3 but his visit was postponed.

On Thursday, the Army said that India and China are making progress on ending the months-long military face-off but it is a complicated process and needs verification on the ground.

“The Senior Commanders reviewed the progress on implementation of the first phase of disengagement and discussed further steps to ensure complete disengagement,” said army spokesman Colonel Aman Anand. “The two sides remain committed to the objective of complete disengagement. This process is intricate and requires constant verification,” he said.