Union Minister of Home Affairs Amit Shah said on Saturday that the Indian Army is always battle-ready, days after Chinese President Xi Jinping asked his country’s troops to be prepared for war, amid border tensions between India and China, News18 reported.
In an interview, Shah said India will never cede “even an inch” of territory to China. “Every nation is always ready,” he said. “That’s the purpose of maintaining armies – to respond to any form of aggression. I am not saying this in reference to any particular comments, but India’s defense forces are always ready.”
However, he said channels of communication between the two countries are open. “I don’t find it pertinent to comment as the country’s home minister,” Shah said. “But I will repeat the words of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. We are on guard and no one can snatch even an inch of our territory from us.” India and China held their latest round of military and diplomatic talks on October 12, in an attempt to break the standoff between troops of the two countries on the border.
Asked if India should change its policy towards Taiwan and Tibet as a tit-for-tat response to Chinese aggression, Shah said he could not speak about that on this forum. “Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and foreign minister S Jaishankar have cleared India’s position on the floor of Parliament,” he said. “I think that’s enough. Talks with China are underway.”
However, he said the world knows India’s intentions are “noble and strong”, and that it has the support of most countries around the world.
India-China tensions
Military heads of the two countries have engaged in several rounds of talks over the last three months after 20 Indians and an unknown number of Chinese soldiers were killed in violent clashes in Galwan Valley in Ladakh on June 15. But these talks have failed to break the impasse.
On Wednesday, Beijing said it does not recognize Indian sovereignty over Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh, claiming that India had illegally occupied Ladakh. In response, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said that China has no locus standi to comment on the matter. The ministry said Ladakh, as well as Arunachal Pradesh, are integral parts of India and this has been conveyed to the Chinese side on many occasions.
After the sixth round of military talks on September 22, India and China had resolved to stop sending more troops to the frontline amid the border standoff. Both countries also agreed to take practical measures to properly solve problems on the ground and ensure peace in the border areas.
Union Minister of Home Affairs Amit Shah said on Saturday that the Indian Army is always battle-ready, days after Chinese President Xi Jinping asked his country’s troops to be prepared for war, amid border tensions between India and China, News18 reported.
In an interview, Shah said India will never cede “even an inch” of territory to China. “Every nation is always ready,” he said. “That’s the purpose of maintaining armies – to respond to any form of aggression. I am not saying this in reference to any particular comments, but India’s defense forces are always ready.”
However, he said channels of communication between the two countries are open. “I don’t find it pertinent to comment as the country’s home minister,” Shah said. “But I will repeat the words of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. We are on guard and no one can snatch even an inch of our territory from us.” India and China held their latest round of military and diplomatic talks on October 12, in an attempt to break the standoff between troops of the two countries on the border.
Asked if India should change its policy towards Taiwan and Tibet as a tit-for-tat response to Chinese aggression, Shah said he could not speak about that on this forum. “Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and foreign minister S Jaishankar have cleared India’s position on the floor of Parliament,” he said. “I think that’s enough. Talks with China are underway.”
However, he said the world knows India’s intentions are “noble and strong”, and that it has the support of most countries around the world.
India-China tensions
Military heads of the two countries have engaged in several rounds of talks over the last three months after 20 Indians and an unknown number of Chinese soldiers were killed in violent clashes in Galwan Valley in Ladakh on June 15. But these talks have failed to break the impasse.
On Wednesday, Beijing said it does not recognize Indian sovereignty over Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh, claiming that India had illegally occupied Ladakh. In response, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said that China has no locus standi to comment on the matter. The ministry said Ladakh, as well as Arunachal Pradesh, are integral parts of India and this has been conveyed to the Chinese side on many occasions.
After the sixth round of military talks on September 22, India and China had resolved to stop sending more troops to the frontline amid the border standoff. Both countries also agreed to take practical measures to properly solve problems on the ground and ensure peace in the border areas.
