India, China should urgently address ‘prolonged situation’ on borders, Modi says
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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping attending the Brics summit in Johannesburg in 2018.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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MUMBAI – India and China should urgently address the “prolonged situation” on their border, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in remarks published on April 10, in an apparent softening of tone on bilateral issues between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.
“It is my belief that we need to urgently address the prolonged situation on our borders so that the abnormality in our bilateral interactions can be put behind us,” Mr Modi said in an interview with US publication Newsweek.
Ties between India and China, which share a long mountainous border, have been strained since troops of both countries clashed on their disputed Himalayan frontier,
In May 2023, Mr Modi said peace on the border was essential for normal relations with China, adding that India was committed to protecting its sovereignty and dignity.
Internal security and strong foreign policy are two planks he has used as he campaigns for a record third term, in a general election that gets under way next week and will span nearly two months.
“For India, the relationship with China is important and significant,” Mr Modi said, adding that peaceful relations between the two neighbours were important for the entire region and world.
India and China share a 3,800km border – much of it poorly demarcated – over which they also fought a bloody war in 1962. REUTERS
