Jaishankar reaches Riyadh to attend first India-GCC meet
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar arrived in Riyadh early Sunday to attend the first India–Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Foreign Ministers' Meeting, which will be held on Monday.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday acknowledged that India’s relations with China are not doing ‘very well’ primarily because of the ongoing military standoff between the two countries in eastern Ladakh.
“We have views on China based on our experience. Our relations with China are not doing very well, the main reason for that is in 2020, during the COVID, China brought a very large number of forces to the border areas between India and China in violation of agreements that we had with China and that created tensions which led to a clash, people died on both sides,” he said at a press conference in Tokyo where he is attending the Quad foreign ministers’ meeting.
Noting that the issue of Ladakh has not been fully resolved yet between the two nations, Dr Jaishankar remarked, “The consequences of that continue as the issue has not been fully resolved. The relationship right now with China is not good, not normal.”
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“As a neighbour, we hope for a better relationship, but that can only happen if they respect the LOC and respect agreements which they have signed in the past,” he said.
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