Borders have been quiet: NSA Doval at SR talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang
Doval and Wang held the talks under the framework of Special Representatives (SR) mechanism that came ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's planned visit to China to attend the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).
In his televised opening remarks, the NSA recalled his visit to Beijing in December last for the previous round of SR talks and said there has been an 'upward trend' in the ties between the two sides since then.
'Borders have been quiet, there has been peace and tranquillity, our bilateral engagements have been more substantial,' he said.
Doval also formally announced that Modi will visit China to attend the SCO Summit, to be held in Tianjin on August 31 and September 1 and noted that the Special Representatives talks have assumed a 'very special importance' in view of the trip.
The NSA also made a mention of the talks between PM Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the margins of a multilateral event in the Russian city of Kazan in October last year, adding that both sides benefited a lot since then.
'The new environment that has been created has helped us in moving ahead in various areas that we were working on,' Doval said.
The Modi-Xi meeting took place two days after India and China firmed up a disengagement pact for the remaining two friction points of Depsang and Demchok in eastern Ladakh.
The two leaders had decided to revive several mechanisms, including talks between the Special Representatives, to normalise bilateral ties.
In his remarks, the Chinese foreign minister said the two sides should 'increase mutual trust through strategic communication, expand common interest through exchanges and cooperation, and properly settle the specific issues' along the borders. 'We are heartened to see the stability that is now restored in the borders,' he said.
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