US ‘concerned’ about India-China border standoff, says ‘both sides should work together’ for peace

NEW DELHI: The US said on Wednesday that it’s “concerned” about the India-China border standoff in Doklam that’s now entered its second month.

“I know that the United States is concerned about the ongoing situation there,” said US state department spokesperson Heather Nauert.

She added that the US believes the only way forward is the two countries talking to resolve the situation.
“I know we believe that both parties, both sides should work together to try to come up with some better sort of arrangement for peace,” Nauert said.

Her comments echo are in line with what another state department official told PTI on Tuesday about the Doklam conflict.

“We encourage India and China to engage in a direct dialogue aimed at reducing tensions,” the official who wasn’t named told PTI.

Since June 16, tensions have been high between Beijing and New Delhi, after China violated the border and entered Doklam in the Sikkim sector to begin constructing a road. Bhutan too registered a strong protest after China’s action in Doklam, which is on the India-Bhutan-China tri-junction.

On Tuesday, a former US diplomat took India’s side in the ongoing standoff.

“China, I think, needs to acknowledge the fact that there is growing strategic and security capability across Asia, and certainly India is a force to be reckoned with,” said Nisha Desai Biswal, a former US assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asia, to PTI.

Biswal further said China’s behaviour is “unsettling”for other countries in the region.
“While I understand that sentiment within China, that I think seeks to try to assert China as a dominant player across the Asia-Pacific, I think China has to content with the fact that across its geography, throughout the Asia-Pacific region, countries are unsettled by its behaviour and by its unilateral actions,” Biswal said.