India to Focus on Resolving Border Issues with China, Says External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar

New Delhi, Tuesday - India’s newly appointed External Affairs Minister, S Jaishankar, announced on Tuesday that the country will focus on resolving the remaining issues along the frontier with China. This comes amid a border row in eastern Ladakh that has lasted over four years and significantly strained bilateral ties.

Jaishankar, 69, who recently took charge of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), is among senior BJP leaders, including Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari, and Nirmala Sitharaman, who retained their ministries from the previous government.

Addressing Cross-Border Terrorism

In his first address after taking charge, Jaishankar referred to cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan, stating that efforts will be made to address this challenge. “With Pakistan, we have the issue of terrorism – cross-border terrorism – how do we find a solution to it…that cannot be a policy of a good neighbour,” he said.

Guiding Axioms of Indian Foreign Policy

The External Affairs Minister declared that “Bharat First” (India First) and “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” (The world is one family) will be the two guiding axioms of Indian foreign policy. He expressed confidence that these principles would position India as ‘Vishwa Bandhu’ – a trusted country in a turbulent and divided world, a world of conflicts and tensions.

On Ties with China

On the subject of ties with China, Jaishankar acknowledged that some issues remained along the border with that country and that efforts will be made to resolve them. “Our focus with regard to China will be on how to resolve the remaining issues,” he told reporters.

The Indian and Chinese militaries have been locked in a standoff since May 2020. A full resolution of the border row has not yet been achieved, although the two sides have disengaged from a number of friction points.

Looking Ahead

Jaishankar also briefly talked about the government’s foreign policy priorities. “Looking ahead, definitely I think the two axioms that the Prime Minister has given us – ‘Bharat First’ and ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ – these will be the two guiding axioms of Indian foreign policy,” he said.

He concluded by expressing his honour and privilege to lead the Ministry of External Affairs once again, praising the ministry’s exceptional performance in the previous term. “It is for me an immense honour and great privilege to be once again given the responsibility of leading the Ministry of External Affairs. In the last term, this ministry actually performed exceptionally well,” he said.