NSA Doval meets with top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi in South Africa

livemint.com:

National Security Adviser Ajit Doval met with China’s top foreign policy official Wang Yi on the sidelines of the BRICS NSAs’ Meeting in South Africa on Monday. Wang Yi, who serves as Director of the CPC Foreign Affairs Commission, is China’s seniormost diplomat. “During the meeting, NSA conveyed that the situation along the LAC in the Western Sector of the India-China boundary since 2020 had eroded strategic trust and the public and political basis of the relationship.

NSA emphasised the importance of continuing efforts to fully resolve the situation and restore peace and tranquility in the border areas, so as to remove impediments to normalcy in bilateral relations," reads a press release by the Ministry of External Affairs. As National Security Adviser, Doval plays a key role in the management of the border crisis with China. This has become a particular challenge after the border standoffs with China in the northern sector, which began in May 2020.

The following June saw clashes between Indian and Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley, which saw fatalities on both sides. Since then, bilateral relations have entered a deep freeze. While China has called on India to treat the border as a distinct issue left over from history, New Delhi has made clear that the resumption of normal bilateral ties will be conditioned on the restoration of normalcy on the border.

Doval and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar have held numerous rounds of talks with their Chinese counterparts on resolving the border crisis. While both sides have disengaged in some areas of the border, standoffs in some areas continue. “The two sides agreed that the India-China bilateral relationship is significant not only for the two countries but also for