China has not adhered to agreements with India to maintain peace at the border and tried to unilaterally change the Line of Actual Control (LAC) leading to a “tense” situation, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said.
His remarks came days after troops of both the countries clashed on December 9 last year in Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh. It was the first major flare up since stand-offs erupted at the LAC in Eastern Ladakh in May 2020, leading to a bloody brawl in the Galwan valley there.
China did not observe agreements with India on border issues and that is why there is a "tense situation" between the two neighbours, Jaishankar pointed out as he explained how Beijing tried to "unilaterally change the LAC".
During an interview to Austria's national broadcaster ORF on lateMonday, Jaishankar said India had agreements with China not to mass force in the border areas.
However, China did not observe those agreements, "which is why we have the currently tense situation that we do", he said while responding to a question. "We had an agreement not to unilaterally change the Line of Control (LAC), which they (China) have tried to unilaterally do," he said.
Replying to a counter question on what if China also says India did not observe the agreements, Jaishankar said it's difficult for Beijing to say that as the "record is very clear".
"Today, there is a lot of transparency in satellite pictures. If we see who moved the forces to the border areas first, I think the record is very clear. So, it is very difficult for China to say what you have suggested they could," Jaishankar said.
Meanwhile, the external affairs slammed the slammed the slow pace of the United Nations(UN) reforms, saying those who are enjoying the benefits of permanent membership are not in a hurry to see reforms.
India has been at the forefront of efforts at the UN to push for urgent long-pending reform of the Security Council, emphasising that it rightly deserves a place at the UN high table as a permanent member.
"You will have a situation when the world's most populous country is not among the permanent members of the security council, what does it say about the state of the UN", Jaishankar said in the interview.
Asked how long will it take until this reform of the UN Security Council, he said, "...Those who are today enjoying the benefits of permanent membership clearly are not in a hurry to see reform. I think it's a very short-sighted view…Because at the end of the day, the credibility of the UN and their own interests and effectiveness are at stake."
"So my sense is, it will take some time, hopefully not too much time. I can see a growing body of opinion among UN members who believe that they must be changed. It's not just us," Jaishankar said.
The five permanent members are Russia, the UK, China, France and the United States and these countries can veto any substantive resolution.
"You have entire Africa and Latin America left out, with developing countries vastly underrepresented. This was an organisation invented in 1945. It's 2023," he added.