NEW DELHI:

India on Friday confirmed that an “incident” had taken place between the Indian and Chinese troops near Pangong Lake in Ladakh and also reiterated that it will continue to engage with Beijing to find a mutually acceptable solution to the Doklam standoff.
“Today, I can confirm that there was an incident at Pangong Tso on August 15,” MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said when questioned by reporters about the reported scuffle that involved stone-throwing and fisticuffs.

“Such incident do not contribute to peace and tranquillity at the border and  not interest of either side,” he added.

Ladakh and  Nathu La:

The MEA spokesperson said two meetings of the border patrol management teams had already taken place in Ladakh and in Nathu La in the past couple of weeks.

Asked about the current status of the standoff, he said, “It is a sensitive issue… We will continue to engage with China to find mutually acceptable solution. Peace and tranquility in border areas are important pre-requisites for smooth development of bilateral relations.” However, he said, “I am not an astrologer, so cannot predict”,

Questioned about a mocking racist video put out by Chinese official agency, Xinhua, the MEA spokesperson said, “I will not dignify it with a comment.”

In the context of floods in UP, Bihar etc, Raveesh Kumar said that China had not shared hydrological data of transborder rivers like Sutlej and Brahmaputra with India this year.

Questioned about Bhutan’s pushback to China on territorial claims, MEA spokesperson said the June 29 statement was clear. Bhutanese government clarified that Doklam belonged to them and not China.

Asked about the reported comments of the Japanese Ambassador on Doklam face off and if India welcomes it, Kumar gave a very guarded reaction, saying the remarks speak for themselves.

Meanwhile, China hit back at Japan on Friday for its support to India on the Doklam crisis.

Japan is the first country to openly speak on the crisis and back India. Japanese envoy Kenji Hiramatsu said yesterday the region was disputed and Tokyo understands why New Delhi got embroiled in it.

Also read: Step back from Doklam to avoid confrontation: Chinese army to India

China releases 15-page Doklam statement, asks for ‘unconditional withdrawal’