‘Unwise to let isolated incidents to affect Sino-India ties`

Beijing: Amid reports of frequent incursions by Chinese troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), Chinese state media on Tuesday said it was "unwise" to let the "isolated incidents" to affect the "promising" Sino-India ties.

While the Chinese Foreign and Defence Ministries were yet to respond to queries relating to the fresh reports of incursions in Ladakh sector, a commentary in the state-run Xinhua news agency accused the Indian media of putting out "sensational reports", "harming" the bilateral relations. "The disputes, a historical hangover, were not created in one day, neither will they be resolved overnight. It is unwise to let isolated incidents along the border to negatively affect the promising China-India relationship," it said. Observers say "isolated incidents" remark referring to the recurring incidents of incursions is the first comment from Beijing on the issue since the first intrusion reported on April 15 at the Daulat Beig Oldi (DBO) in Ladakh sector. So far the Chinese Foreign Ministry`s comments on the incident confined to assertions that the Chinese troops are patrolling their side of the border or played down the incidents saying that the overall situation at the border is peaceful and both the countries signed several agreements to maintain peace and trust building between the two militaries. Significantly the Xinhua commentary was timed to coincide with the talks between officials of the two countries on incursion issue being held in New Delhi today. "Looking back on Indian media hype about Chinese border intrusions, one has to admit such sensational reports are indeed harmful to the China-India relationship," it said. "Such reports have only served to further sow misunderstandings between Indians and Chinese even at a time when their leaders are working hard to manage their differences and to build a constructive relationship that can benefit both sides". It also highlighted the repeated assertions by Beijing and New Delhi that they are committed to maintaining peace and stability along the border before the issues are completely resolved. Indian media traditionally focused heavily on the border disputes between New Delhi and Beijing, are now asserting again that Chinese troops have crossed the "border" between the two countries, it said. The new allegations came just a few months after similar reports "soured to some extent the atmosphere of a visit by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang to India", the commentary said. "Fortunately, Beijing and New Delhi, with political wisdom, made joint efforts to defuse the tensions timely, and the visit, part of Li`s maiden overseas tour since assuming premiership in March, turned out a big success," it said. "Li and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, through candid talks and in-depth discussions, substantially enhanced strategic mutual trust, which is a valuable thing for two countries that fought a brief border war in 1962," it said. Despite sometimes frosty political relations, China has become one of India`s top trading partners. Both countries have agreed to increase their bilateral trade, standing at USD 66.5 billion in 2012 to USD 100 billion by 2015, it said. The two economies, with distinctive competitive advantages, can also work on more joint investment projects, it said. "Beijing and New Delhi should build on the positive momentum yielded by Premier Li`s visit. After all, the right track forward for the two giant neighbours is to boost investment, expand trade and strengthen links so that both countries can benefit from the win-win cooperation," it said. "As for media from both countries, playing up the border disputes is hardly a constructive way of doing thing," it said. PTI