Beijing: While reacting to India’s statement that in which they blamed China for last year’s Doklam stand off, China has said that India should have ‘learnt from that.’
Reacting to India’s Ambassador to China Gautam Bambawale’s remarks, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said, “Donglong (Dokalam) belongs to China because we have historical conventions.”
“China’s activities there are within our sovereign rights. There is no such thing as changing status quo,” she said at a media briefing here.
“Last year thanks to our concerted efforts and our wisdom we properly resolved this issue. We hope the Indian side could learn some lessons from this and stick to the historical conventions and work with China to ensure the atmosphere in the border areas is conducive for the development of bilateral ties,” she said.
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India’s envoy in an interview to Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post had blamed China for the stand-off in Dokalam saying it happened because Beijing tried to alter the “status quo” which it should not have.
He had said that any change of status quo along the India-China border may lead to another Dokalam-like crisis.
He said that though “no change” has taken place in the standoff site at Dokalam after it was resolved last year, the PLA may be reinforcing its troops “well behind the sensitive area”.
Asked about Bambawale’s comments that the 3488-km long Line of Actual Control (LAC) should be demarcated and delineated, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on the delimitation China’s position is clear and consistent.
“The east, middle and western side is yet to be officially demarcated,” she said.
“China is committed to resolving the disputes through negotiations. China and India are exploring ways to resolve this territorial dispute through negotiations so that we can arrive at mutually acceptable solution,” she said, referring to the boundary talks between the two countries.
Recently, Indian Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that India was ‘ready and alert’ for any kind of situation in Doklam.
“India is ready to face any situation. We will maintain our territory and integrity at all cost.”
Recently, a report in the Print claimed that China, during the winter has constructed a new road to South Doklam, by passing the Indian blockade.
An earlier report in The Print in January also claimed that China has almost completely taken control of the northern side of the disputed plateau.
According to report, the latest satellite imagery from the area suggests that while road construction at the point of contention has stopped, China has been working through the winter to create an alternate route that will give it access to the southern part of the plateau.
In a bid to better relations with China, the Indian Government recently told its leaders and government functionaries to stay away from programmes which host the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.
ALSO READ: Tibet is not seeking independence, we want to stay with China, want more development: Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama, In a video message to the International Campaign for Tibet, recently said that with a EU like concept, he is ready to remain within China.
“I always, you see, admire the spirit of (the) European Union.Common interest (is) more important rather than one’s own national interest. With that kind of concept, I am very much willing to remain within the People’s Republic of China. The Chinese word, “gongheguo” (republic), shows some kind of union is there.”
