UN head Guterres urges India, China to de-escalate tensions along border

United Nations: Days after Indian and Chinese troops battled in the Tawang region of Arunachal Pradesh, inflicting minor injuries on both sides of the conflict, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged both countries for de-escalating tension along the border.

Chinese troops attempted to "unilaterally" alter the status quo along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Tawang sector of Arunachal Pradesh on December 9, according to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who stated this in Parliament on Tuesday. However, the Indian Army's "firm and resolute" response forced the Chinese troops to retreat.

When Stephane Dujarric, Spokesperson to the UN Secretary-General was asked to comment on this issue, he said: "Yeah, we've seen these reports. We call for de-escalation and to ensure that the tensions in that area do not grow."

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin addressing a media briefing in Beijing on Tuesday said the two sides have maintained smooth communication on boundary-related issues through diplomatic and military channels.

It is the first major clash between the Indian and Chinese armies since the fierce face-off in the Galwan Valley in June 2020 that marked the most serious military conflict between the two sides in decades.

This is also the first major incident at the border after Chinese President Xi Jinping was re-elected for an unprecedented third five-year term at the once-in-five-year Congress of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC).

The Friday clash took place even as both countries held 16 rounds of talks between their commanders to resolve the standoffs at various points since the eastern Ladakh border standoff which erupted in May 2020, following a violent clash in the Pangong lake area.

The last round of talks was held in September during which both sides agreed to disengage their troops at Patrolling Point 15 in the Gogra-Hot Springs area.

India has been consistently maintaining that peace and tranquillity along the LAC are important for the overall development of bilateral ties.

With PTI inputs