Situation in Ladakh the ‘most serious’ after 1962 conflict, says Jaishankar

TIL Desk/National/New Delhi/ A solution to the border row with China must be predicated on honouring all agreements and understandings without attempting to alter the status quo unilaterally, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said, in a clear assertion of India’s position on the issue.

Jaishankar called the situation in Ladakh the “most serious” after the 1962 conflict, adding the quantum of forces currently deployed by both sides at the Line of Actual Control(LAC) is also “unprecedented”. At the same time, he noted that all border situations were resolved through diplomacy.

“As you know, we are talking to the Chinese both through military channels and diplomatic ones. In fact, they work in tandem,” the external affairs minister told in an interview ahead of the release of his book ‘The India Way: Strategies for an Uncertain World’.

“But when it comes to finding a solution, this must be predicated on honouring all agreements and understandings. And not attempting to alter the status quo unilaterally,” he said. India has been insisting that the border standoff with China must be resolved in accordance with the existing agreements and protocols for border management between the two countries.