Defense Ministry said two sides exchanged views on regional developments (File)
New Delhi:
India announced to the United States on Friday that it plans to resolve the military deadlock with China in eastern Ladakh through existing bilateral mechanisms, sending a clear message to Washington for the second day in a row that President Donald Trump’s offer to mediate at the border was unacceptable to her.
India’s position on the matter has been communicated to Defense Secretary Mark T Esper by Defense Minister Rajnath Singh during a telephone conversation, official sources said.
Amid the pushbacks between the Indian and Chinese armies, Trump said on Wednesday that he was “ready, willing and able to mediate” between the two countries.
The Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that India was engaged with China to peacefully resolve the border, practically rejecting the offer. China also rejected it, saying the two countries are capable of properly resolving their differences through dialogue and did not need the help of a “third party”.
The sources said that Singh had informed Esper that existing bilateral mechanisms were being used to resolve the situation.
In a statement, the Defense Ministry said that the two sides had exchanged views on regional developments of common security interest, adding that the telephone conversation had taken place following a request from the American side .
“They reviewed the progress of various bilateral defense cooperation agreements and expressed their commitment to further promote our defense partnership,” he said.
Also on Thursday, Trump reiterated his offer to mediate and said he spoke to Prime Minister Modi, who is not “in a good mood” about the “great conflict”.
Several hours later, major government sources contradicted the President’s assertion of the conversation between him and Prime Minister Modi about India’s military stalemate with China in eastern Ladakh.
