*The standoff between India and China over the latest incursion by the Chinese People's Liberation Army into the Indian side of the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh continued on Wednesday, with New Delhi indicating that although its parleys with Beijing on the issue had not yet yielded any satisfactory outcome, it would continue to hold talks.*
"We are not satisfied with the situation, but the discussions are on," External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid told journalists in New Delhi. China, however, stuck to its stand and reiterated that the PLA personnel did not violate the Line of Actual Control even "by a step.
"We have a system in place which kicks in when there is an issue and then that system tries to provide a solution. That is what we are doing right now. That process is going on and I hope we will find a solution. I think we are going in the right direction," said Khurshid, even as the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party demanded that the government should make a statement in Parliament on the issue.
The stand-off came at a time when New Delhi and Beijing are preparing for the maiden visit of new Chinese Premier Li Keqiang to India next month. Khurshid, himself, is likely to travel to Beijing for a meeting with his counterpart Wang Yi to prepare for the visit of Li. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh too is expected to visit China later this year.
Though the second flag meeting between the Chinese and Indian armies on Tuesday failed to defuse the simmering tension along the Line of Actual Control in the Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir, New Delhi is understood to be expecting more talks with Beijing on the issue within the next few days.
The PLA officers, who took part in the flag meeting on Tuesday, are understood to have refused to withdraw troops as long as the Indian Army did not pull back from some of the forward positions along the LAC. The Indian Army is not yet ready to concede to the PLA's demand.
The government is understood to be weighing its options taking into account inputs from the Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Defence.
The stand-off began on April 15 last, when a platoon of the People's Liberation Army transgressed into the Indian side of the Line of Actual Control at Depsang, nearly 30 km south of Daulat Beg Oldie, a World War II airstrip that the Indian Air Force reactivated in 2008. The Chinese soldiers have since pitched tents in the area and stayed put.
Two Chinese choppers too intruded into Indian airspace on the same day, presumably to support the transgressing platoon of the PLA. New Delhi in the past played down similar incursions by the PLA soldiers, stating that such incidents happened due to conflicting perceptions of the two countries on the alignment of the Line of Actual Control.
Such transgressions in the past few years did not result in a stand-off as the PLA soldiers withdrew after Indian Army personnel pointed out to them that they had transgressed the LAC.
The April 15 incident in Depsang, however, stood apart from earlier incursions, as the PLA soldiers not only violated what India perceives as the LAC, but also crossed the Chinese claim-line, set up tents and stayed put.
Indian Army reacted by deploying troops of the Ladakh Scouts as well as soldiers of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police just about a few hundred metres away from the makeshift military post. Reported by Deccan Herald 53 minutes ago.
"We are not satisfied with the situation, but the discussions are on," External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid told journalists in New Delhi. China, however, stuck to its stand and reiterated that the PLA personnel did not violate the Line of Actual Control even "by a step.
"We have a system in place which kicks in when there is an issue and then that system tries to provide a solution. That is what we are doing right now. That process is going on and I hope we will find a solution. I think we are going in the right direction," said Khurshid, even as the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party demanded that the government should make a statement in Parliament on the issue.
The stand-off came at a time when New Delhi and Beijing are preparing for the maiden visit of new Chinese Premier Li Keqiang to India next month. Khurshid, himself, is likely to travel to Beijing for a meeting with his counterpart Wang Yi to prepare for the visit of Li. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh too is expected to visit China later this year.
Though the second flag meeting between the Chinese and Indian armies on Tuesday failed to defuse the simmering tension along the Line of Actual Control in the Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir, New Delhi is understood to be expecting more talks with Beijing on the issue within the next few days.
The PLA officers, who took part in the flag meeting on Tuesday, are understood to have refused to withdraw troops as long as the Indian Army did not pull back from some of the forward positions along the LAC. The Indian Army is not yet ready to concede to the PLA's demand.
The government is understood to be weighing its options taking into account inputs from the Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Defence.
The stand-off began on April 15 last, when a platoon of the People's Liberation Army transgressed into the Indian side of the Line of Actual Control at Depsang, nearly 30 km south of Daulat Beg Oldie, a World War II airstrip that the Indian Air Force reactivated in 2008. The Chinese soldiers have since pitched tents in the area and stayed put.
Two Chinese choppers too intruded into Indian airspace on the same day, presumably to support the transgressing platoon of the PLA. New Delhi in the past played down similar incursions by the PLA soldiers, stating that such incidents happened due to conflicting perceptions of the two countries on the alignment of the Line of Actual Control.
Such transgressions in the past few years did not result in a stand-off as the PLA soldiers withdrew after Indian Army personnel pointed out to them that they had transgressed the LAC.
The April 15 incident in Depsang, however, stood apart from earlier incursions, as the PLA soldiers not only violated what India perceives as the LAC, but also crossed the Chinese claim-line, set up tents and stayed put.
Indian Army reacted by deploying troops of the Ladakh Scouts as well as soldiers of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police just about a few hundred metres away from the makeshift military post. Reported by Deccan Herald 53 minutes ago.