New Delhi: According to an official statement the Indian and Chinese external affairs ministers agreed to cool down tensions on the ground as soon as possible. The two leaders spoken to maintain peace and tranquility in the border area in accordance with the agreement reached between the two countries. The Indian and Chinese external ministers Jai Shankar and Wang Yi had a telephonic conversation came after 20 army personnel were killed in the clashes with Chinese troops on Monday in the Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh.

The biggest military confrontation has significantly escalated the already volatile border standoff between the two countries. During the telephonic conversation, Jai Shankar conveyed to Wang India’s protest in the strongest terms on the violent face-off and said the unprecedented development will have “serious impact” on bilateral ties.         

He asked the Chinese side to reassess its actions and take corrective steps, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement in New Delhi. The Chinese side took pre-meditated and planned action that was directly responsible for the resulting violence and casualties. It reflected intent to change the facts on ground in violation of all our agreements to not change the status quo,” Jai Shankar told Wang.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement here that the two sides agreed to deal “fairly” with the serious events caused by the conflict in the Galwan Valley, jointly abide by the consensus reached at the military-level meetings between the two sides, “cool down the situation on the ground as soon as possible”, and maintain peace and tranquility in the border area in accordance with the agreement reached so far between the two countries.

For this reason, mutual respect and mutual support is the right direction for the two sides, which is in the long-term interests of the two countries; “mutual suspicion and mutual friction are evil paths, and contrary to the fundamental aspirations of the two peoples,” he said. The Chinese foreign minister also alleged that on the evening of June 15, the Indian front-line frontier troops “blatantly broke the consensus” reached at the military-level meeting between the two sides.