BEIJING, Oct 23:Seeking to defuse recurring border stand-offs, India and China today inked a comprehensive pact which commits them not to use military capability to attack each other but a deal on a liberalised visa regime could not be signed with India strongly opposing China’s stapled visa policy.
Under a Border Defence Cooperation Agreement (BDCA) signed after extensive talks between Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and his Chinese counterpart Li Keqiang here, the two neighbours also agreed not to tail each other’s patrol along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) which has witnessed numerous incursions by Chinese troops at Depsang Valley in Ladakh.
The BDCA facilitates the establishment of a hotline between the military headquarters of the two countries and meeting sites for border personnel in all sectors of the 4000-km LAC.
The talks between the two premiers at the Great Hall of the People lasted over three hours. Singh and Li met for the second time this year for “fruitful and productive” discussions.
In all, nine agreements, including the BDCA and one on strengthening cooperation on trans-border rivers, were signed after restricted and delegation-level talks.
But as expected, there was no agreement on liberalising the visa regime, which the Chinese side was very keen on but India was not in the wake of a controversy over stapled visas issued by the Chinese Embassy to two Indian archers from Arunachal Pradesh.
During the talks, India objected to stapled visas issued by China to residents of some Indian States over whose parts Beijing has laid claim.
Singh pledged his commitment to easing the visa regime to facilitate the travel of Chinese nationals.
He told the media after the talks that he had “conveyed to Premier Li our commitment to visa simplification to facilitate travel of Chinese nationals to India and expressed the hope that China will also facilitate such exchanges”.
Ahead of the visit, there were indications that an agreement on a liberalised visa regime was close to being signed between the countries.
But upset by the issue of stapled visas to residents of Arunachal Pradesh, India decided to defer the issue in a virtual tit-for-tat.
Sources said the agreement will be signed “some day” but India has decided to “slow down things” for the moment.
Refusing to go into the details of what was discussed in the meeting between the two Prime Ministers, Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh said in response to questions at a news briefing that the issue of stapled visas had come up.
“It will be under discussion,” she said when she was asked whether the Chinese had given assurances that they would not resort to such a practice in future.
The Foreign Secretary asserted that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of India but refused to go into details of the discussions. “I have told you what we can share with you at this moment,” she said.
The two premiers told the media the fact that they met twice in a single calendar year, the first time this has happened since 1954, reflected the significance of the strategic relationship between the two countries. The agreements signed today will inject a new dynamism in the ties, they said.
The four-page BDCA, signed by Defence Secretary R K Mathur and PLA Deputy Chief of General Staff Lt Gen Sun Jianguo, has 10 clauses that seek to maintain peace, tranquillity and stability along the 4,000-km LAC.
It reiterates that neither side shall its use its military capability against the other and that their respective military strengths shall not be used to attack the other side.
It reaffirms that neither side shall use or threaten to use force against the other side by any means or seek equal security.
Affirming that the two sides would continue implementing confidence-building measures in the military field along the LAC, the BDCA stated they would consider establishing a hotline between their military headquarters and specific arrangements for this will be decided through mutual consultations.
The two sides agreed that they shall not follow or tail patrols of the other side in areas where there is no common understanding of the LAC, and in case of a doubtful situation, clarifications will be sought and got through established mechanisms.
“The agreement on border defence cooperation that we have just signed will add to the existing instruments to ensure peace, stability and predictability on our borders,” Singh said.
The lack of clarity and difference in perceptions about the LAC have been blamed by both sides for intrusions.
The PLA intrusion in Depsang Valley in eastern Ladakh lasted three weeks before India could ensure the return of the Chinese troops in May.
India and China further agreed that if their border defence forces come “face-to-face” in areas where there is no no common understanding of the LAC, both sides shall exercise maximum self-restraint, refrain from any provocative actions, not use force or threaten to use force against the other side, treat each other with courtesy and prevent exchange of fire or armed conflict.
“The two sides shall implement this agreement without prejudice to their respective positions on the alignment of the LAC as well as on the boundary question,” the BDCA stated.
In his remarks at the joint news interaction, Singh said the two countries agreed that peace and tranquillity on the borders must remain the foundation for growth in the India-China relationship “even as we move forward negotiations towards a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable settlement to the India-China boundary question”.
The BDCA recalled the spirit of various agreements on border management signed since 1993 and the establishment of a working mechanism for consultation and coordination on India-China Border Affairs inked in January 2012.
“If you are in a face-to-face situation, both sides will exercise maximum self-restraint,” Indian Ambassador to Beijing S Jaishankar said at the media briefing by Foreign Secretary Singh.
Asked if the BDCA would limit the rights of both sides to build infrastructure near the LAC, Jaishankar said, “The short answer is no.
“The longer answer is there is a specific mention of mutual and equal security which is there in all our earlier agreements. Essentially this means the recognition that the situation is asymmetrical. Each side will build its security in its own way.”
Responding to a question about the number of points for meetings of border and military personnel, Jaishankar said the BDCA had just been concluded and there will be further discussions on a working mechanism to decide this issue.
Against the backdrop of complaints about China building dams on the Brahmaputra, the two sides signed a Memorandum of Understanding to further strengthen cooperation on trans-border rivers, cooperate through an expert-level mechanism on provision of flood-season hydrological data and emergency management and exchange views on issues of mutual interest.
Prime Minister Singh said the two countries had agreed that as large neighbours following independent foreign policies, the relationships pursued by India and China with other countries must not become a source of concern for each other. “This will be our strategic reassurance,” he said.
“Accordingly, I suggested to Premier Li that we do things that enhance mutual trust, expand common interest and deepen mutual understanding. I received his full support for this roadmap.”
Asked whether the issue of terrorism emanating from Pakistani soil was discussed at the meeting between Singh and Li, Foreign Secretary Singh confirmed the issue did come up.
“Without going into details as to what we told them and what they told us, I can say it did come up. We put it squarely on the table. We will not go into the specifics,” she said.
Ambassador Jaishankar said the talks covered the entire gamut of relations on bilateral, regional and international issues.
“The Prime Minister has set out a three-point roadmap for enhancing mutual trust, expanding exchange of communication in multilateral forums and the agreements that included BDCA and the agreement on trans-border rivers,” he said.
After signing a border agreement, India and China today asked the Special Representatives (SRs) of the countries to continue their efforts for exploring a framework of the settlement of the boundary question.
A joint statement issued after Singh’s meetings with the Chinese leadership, including Premier Li, said the SRs were encouraged by the leaders to continue work in that direction.
“Peace and tranquillity on the India-China border was recognised as an important guarantor for the development and continued growth of bilateral relations,” the statement said.
The two countries said defence exchanges and military exercises were important in building greater trust and confidence.
The holding of a counter-terrorism exercise next month underlines the shared desire of both Governments to enhance mutual understanding, the statement said.
“The leaders welcomed the signing of a MoU on strengthening cooperation on trans-border rivers,” it said.
Recalling the important understandings reached between leaders of the two countries this year, the two sides reaffirmed their commitment to take forward their Strategic and Cooperative Partnership for Peace and Prosperity.
This would be done by following the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence (Panchsheel) and displaying mutual respect and sensitivity to each other’s concerns and aspirations.
The shared goal of an expanded engagement requires facilitating greater people-to-people contacts and exchanges, the statement said.
The Programme of Cultural Exchange for the years 2013-2015 which includes art and culture, cultural heritage, youth affairs, education, sports, media, publications and mass communications was also signed.
This would be supported by sister-city relationships that have been concluded initially on a pilot basis.
In addition to marking 2014 as a Year of Friendly Exchanges, India and China will discuss with Myanmar appropriate ways of commemorating the 60th anniversary of ‘Panchsheel’.
Singh also met Chinese President Xi Jinping and Chairman of the Naitonal People’s Congress (NPC) Zhang Dejiang.
The issue of stapled visas to two Indian women archers from Arunachal Pradesh by the Chinese Embassy in Delhi recently was raised during the discussions between Prime Minister Singh and Premier Li Keqiang at the Great Hall of the People here.
Pakistan and China have a good relationship which is described as “all weather” friends.
Meanwhile, India and China today signed a new agreement to strengthen cooperation on trans-border rivers aimed at allaying India’s concerns over new dams on the Brahmaputra and facilitating the exchange of flood data.
The agreement, signed after talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Chinese counterpart Li Keqiang, said both countries agreed to strengthen their cooperation further on the trans-border rivers through the existing Expert Level Mechanism to provide flood-season data and emergency management.
Under the new agreement, Chinese side agreed to provide more flood data of Brahmaputra from May to October instead of June to October in the previous agreements river water agreements in 2008 and 2010. (PTI)
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