Nepal hopes India and China will settle disputes peacefully for peace and stability

Kathmandu / June 21: Amid the ongoing India-China border tension that has already claimed the lives of 20 Indian army personnel, Nepal has expressed confidence that ‘friendly neighbors’ India and China will be able to resolve their mutual differences through peaceful means in favor of bilateral, regional and world peace and stability.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) in a press statement on Saturday said Nepal is confident that both the neighboring countries will resolve, in the spirit of good neighborliness, their mutual differences through peaceful means in favor of bilateral, regional and world peace and stability in view of the recent developments in the Galwan Valley area. The ministry said that Nepal maintains that disputes between the countries should be resolved through peaceful means. Nepal has always stood firmly for regional and world peace.

Nepal’s statement comes five days after 20 Indian soldiers were killed in a violent clash with Chinese troops in Galwan Valley along the India-China border on June 15. India has accused China of killing its troops in its territory while China has denied the allegations.

Tension between the two countries continues to exist in the areas as both India and China are reportedly reinforcing their troops despite negotiations between the two sides at various levels to ease the ongoing tension.

On Friday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held an all-party meeting in New Delhi and reiterated his country’s efforts to safeguard territorial integrity and sovereignty, while China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the Galwan Valley belongs to China and the recent military skirmishes took place due to what it said incursion on the part of the Indian military personnel.