A year later, India & China to resume border parleys

NEW DELHI: After a gap of almost a year, the special representatives of India and China will resume talks on the boundary issue later this week.

The 13th round of talks on the boundary issue, which starts on Friday, takes place in the backdrop of recent attempts by China to block Asian Development Bank (ADB) aid for a project in Arunachal Pradesh and to put a hold on India's attempts to get Jaish-e-Mohammad Maulana Masood Azhar designated a terrorist by the UN Security Council.

Sources said that New Delhi had contacted Beijing on the matter last week and shared more information on Maulana Masood Azhar in an effort to push China into lifting the hold in the UNSC. Now, New Delhi is waiting for Beijing���s reaction to the fresh information. "Let's see what happens," sources said.

It is in this atmosphere that Chinese vice foreign minister Dai Bingguo, who arrives in India on Thursday, will hold talks with National Security Advisor M K Narayanan, who has been representing India in the talks over the last couple of years.

The border talks have been stuck on disagreements along the 3600-km border particularly on Tawang, which China wants to take control of due to political implications. For India, Arunachal Pradesh remains "an integral part of India"
India's position in the resolution of the boundary issue remains that it will not agree to any solution that requires disturbing the existing population on both sides of the Line of Actual Control.

During the 13th round of talks, both sides will take up issues related to the demarcation of the boundary after a gap of almost a year. The talks are scheduled to take place over two days. The last round of talks on the boundary issue was held in September 2008.

India has acknowledged that the resolution of the issue will take time and patience. External affairs minister S M Krishna had said in Rajya Sabha last week that the border issue between the two countries is complex and that the aim is to ensure that peace and tranquillity is maintained in the border areas.

"Certainly, there are outstanding issues between India and China. The special representatives are discussing the boundary question and both countries have agreed to seek a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable settlement to this issue," Mr Krishna had said.

As always, the two special representatives are expected to hold discussions on a framework for the boundary settlement on the basis of the Agreement on Political Parameters and Guiding Principles. The two countries had reached an agreement in April 2005 on "political parameters" and "guiding principles".