Ignoring India's demand to revert to a status-quo in Depsang Valley,
China today firmly stuck to its stand that its troops have not violated
the Line of Actual Control (LAC) “by a step” in the Ladakh region.
“I
want to iterate here that the Chinese border troops have been acting in
strict compliance with the bilateral agreements and conducting normal
patrol on the Chinese side of the LAC. They have never crossed the line
by a step”, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying told a
media briefing here.
Ms Hu's assertion of not even a step of
violation was highlighted by the state television, CCTV which along with
the rest of the official media began covering the incident for the
first time even since the Ladakh incursion came to light last week.
She
was replying to a question on yesterday's flag meeting between the
militaries of the two countries in Ladakh region and subsequent
assertion by India that status quo should be restored.
Ms Hua's
assertion, iterating her remarks made on 22 April, makes it clear that
China is sticking to its stand that there is no violation and its troops
may stay put in the area until it is resolved through the talks.
Ms
Hua said both sides have opened the “communication channels” to discuss
the issue though the consultation mechanisms on boundary issue. But, at
the same time she said both sides should stick to the consensus reached
so far on LAC.
“The two sides should abide by their consensus
which is in the interest of both. The two sides should work together to
properly resolve border issues with in the framework of existing
mechanisms and create favourable conditions for the bilateral
relations”, she said.
This is the first time, after the
controversy broke, that China has acknowledged that the issue is being
discussed between the two countries
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