Amid no sign of easing of the situation at Eastern Ladakh, India today firmly told China that it expected Beijing to sincerely follow up and ensure the expeditious restoration of peace and tranquility in border areas as per bilateral agreements and protocols.

‘’The two sides will continue their meetings both at the military and diplomatic level, including under the framework of WMCC (Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination), in the future to resolve the issues to mutual satisfaction,’ External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said at a media briefing.

Noting that the two countries have been having discussions through established diplomatic and military channels to address the situation along the LAC, he specifically mentioned the three meetings between senior military commanders held on 6 June, 22 June and 30 June. Diplomatic engagements were also continuing in parallel and the WMCC on border affairs had met on 24 June.

Srivastava said the senior military commanders, at their meeting on 30 June, discussed issues related to disengagement at the face-off sites along the LAC and de-escalation from the border areas.

‘’Both sides have emphasised the need for an expeditious, phased and step wise de-escalation as a priority. This is in keeping with the agreement between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi during their conversation on 17 June that the overall situation would be handled in a responsible manner, and that both sides would implement the disengagement understanding of 6 June sincerely. The discussions in the latest meeting of the senior commanders reflected the commitment of both sides to reduce the tensions along the LAC,’’ he added.

On the banning of 59 Chinese apps by India and Beijing’s threat to take the matter to WTO, the spokesperson did not give a direct reply but stated that India would continue to welcome foreign investments, including in the area of internet technologies, but this would have to be in accordance with the rules and regulatory framework established by the government. ‘’The world’s largest software and internet applications companies are present in India. Naturally while operating in India, they have to abide by our rules and regulations issued by the relevant ministries and departments, including those pertaining to data security and privacy of individual data,’’ he added.