'State Of Border Will Determine State Of India-China Relations', Says EAM S Jaishankar

Speaking on overall vision for Asia, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that a narrow “Asian chauvinism” is actually against the continent’s own interests. 

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar

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New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday said that the state of border will determine the state of ties between India and China and asserted that the relations must be based on mutual sensitivity, mutual respect, and mutual interest, reported news agency PTI. The Union minister’s comments came amid lingering military standoffs between the two countries at a number of friction points in eastern Ladakh. 

Jaishankar said that much of Asia’s future depends on how relations between India and China develop in the foreseeable future and that the continent lacks an agreed architecture of any nature. 

"For ties to return to a positive trajectory and remain sustainable, they must be based on the three mutuals: mutual sensitivity, mutual respect and mutual interest," he said in his address at the launch of the Asia Society Policy Institute. 

"Their current status is, of course, well known to all of you. I can only reiterate that the state of the border will determine the state of the relationship," he added, quoted by the news agency. 

It has been two years since the Indian and Chinese troops had been engaged in a standoff at a number of friction points in eastern Ladakh. Though the two sides disengaged in several areas in the region as a result of high-level military talks, the deadlock stays without any major breakthrough.

Speaking on overall vision for Asia, Jaishankar said that a narrow “Asian chauvinism” is actually against the continent’s own interests. 

"Precisely because Asia is so energetic and creative, it would like to benefit from the open doors of other regions. That obviously cannot be a one-way street," he said.

"Such an outlook also goes against the reality of globalisation. Whether it is resources, markets or supply chains, these can no longer be compartmentalised," he said in an oblique reference to China's policies.

Jaishankar also said that Asia's prospects and challenges are today very much dependent on developments in the Indo-Pacific.

"In fact, the concept itself is a reflection of divided Asia, as some have a vested interest in keeping the region less cohesive and interactive," he said.

"That the global commons and the international community are better served by collaborative endeavours like the Quad apparently leaves them cold," he said.