Washington: US President Donald Trump on Wednesday offered to “mediate or arbitrate” what he called a “now raging border dispute” between India and China. The comment refers to a build up along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) by Indian and Chinese armies following a recent face-off in Ladakh.
“We have informed both India and China that the United States is ready, willing and able to mediate or arbitrate their now raging border dispute. Thank you!,” President Trump tweeted.
President Trump’s previous offers to mediate between India and Pakistan on Kashmir were firmly rebuffed by New Delhi, which has long asserted that there is no role for any third party in bilateral issues.
Several areas along the LAC in Ladakh and North Sikkim have seen a military build-up by the Indian and Chinese armies in a sign of escalating tension and hardening of positions by the two nations two weeks after they were engaged in separate face-offs in Sikkim and Ladakh.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a high-level meeting on Tuesday evening to discuss the stand-off with China, sources said. The three service chiefs, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and the Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat attended the meeting. A separate meeting was held earlier with the foreign secretary.
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