22nd round of India-China boundary talks commences in Delhi

The 22nd round of Special Representatives (SR) India-China boundary talks have commenced on December 21. The Indian delegation is being headed by National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval, while the Chinese counterpart is being represented by State Counsellor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi. This is the first meeting between SR of both the nations since the second informal summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Mamallapuram in October this year.

The last round of boundary talks took place at Chengdu in China between Doval and Wang in November last year. During the meeting, both sides had discussed maintaining peace and harmony across the border and highlighted that the boundary question should not hamper the overall development of the bilateral relationship.

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Weidong's Statement

Speaking about the India-China boundary issue on October 9, China’s ambassador to India Sun Weidong stated that the key was to find a solution through dialogue and consultation. He observed that it was a very complex and sensitive issue. Weidong highlighted the mechanism via which both countries had completed 21 rounds of talks to work towards settlement of the boundary issue. He also emphasized the need to maintain peace and tranquillity in the border areas. Highlighting the maturity of the leadership of India and China, he observed that people’s well-being was the foremost priority for them.  

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He said, “Look, the China-India boundary issue is a complex and sensitive issue that left over from history. Since the establishment of the Special Representative Meeting on the Boundary Question in the year 2003, the two sides have held 21 rounds of talks which have played an important role in promoting the settlement of the boundary question and to maintain peace and tranquility in the border areas. So at the present, following the important consensus of our leaders, to properly handle the boundary question and to promote the growth of bilateral relations and with their political guidance, the two sides have been pushing forward their special representatives' meeting process, bearing in mind the overall bilateral ties and people’s wellbeing.” 
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