Khurshid to go ahead with Beijing visit: Official

New Delhi, May 2 (IANS) External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid is to go ahead with his May 9 Beijing visit amid the stand-off between the two countries over the incursion by Chinese troops in Depsang area of Ladakh.

External affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said Thursday, in answer to a question, that Khurshid has said that “he intends to go and that is the last word”.

He said that the Chinese incursion 19 km inside Indian territory on the Line of Actual Control is “localised in geographical and spatial terms” and the goal is to see the Chinese troops return to the position before the April 15 intrusion.

Akbaruddin said that India has been able to “communicate its concerns” to Beijing over the April 15 incursion by Chinese troops.

“The point is very clear that this is an incident limited in geographical scope and spatial,” Akbaruddin said, adding that the “goal is that we return to status quo as it was prior to April 15”.

He added that the channels of both countries were active to resolve the situation.

On Chinese Premier Li Keqiang’s forthcoming visit to Delhi, the spokesperson said both sides were in discussion on it and working out appropriate dates for the visit.

“The preparations are in an advanced stage of planning and discussions,” he added.

A Chinese platoon set up a camp 19 km inside the Indian territory in Ladakh’s Depsang Valley April 15. Both sides have held three inconclusive flag meetings so far.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.