New Delhi: External Affairs Minister, S Jaishankar, on Monday expressed guarded optimism about resolving the border dispute with China but was resolute on the need to keep on improving the infrastructure on the northern borders.
“Talks are on with Chinese, the next meeting will happen soon. Some solutions have come, like at Galwan, Pangong Tso. There has been some progress. Diplomacy takes time,’’ Jaishankar told a group of journalists invited as part of the BJP government’s political outreach.
The Minister revealed that there had been “good progress’’ and “talks are going on’’. At the same time, he expressed the Government’s intention to keep improving the border infrastructure in order to go head-to-head with opposing forces if the need arose.
“How much distance one has to go…to which side…it will be done according to the principle of mutual disengagement to take it forward,’’ he added.
The Minister dwelt for some time on a national security challenge in the north, terming it as the Government’s big effort with respect to China. “Over all the mobility for armed forces and civilians has increased tremendously,’’ he said while acknowledging the contribution of the China Study Group in this regard.
The second major security challenge was on the Myanmar border with the Manipur violence having disrupted work on the trilateral highway from India to Thailand. The Arrakan Rohingya civil disturbances have already affected India’s second major project in the north-east operationalisation of Sittwe Port.
“Operationalisation of Sittwe a concern…..the trilateral highway (India-Myanmar-Thailand) is facing a big challenge today due to the law and order situation,’’ he said. The Minister also went over recent initiatives including plans to link Bhutan with rail, grid connectivity, petroleum pipeline and land bridge with Sri Lanka and pipeline and rail links with Nepal.

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Press Trust of India