Border faceoff is controllable: China ministry

Beijing: China on Wednesday tried to downplay the military stand-off and said the border with India is "overall stable and controllable," and both the countries have proper mechanisms and communication channels to resolve the issues through a dialogue and consultation. The conciliatory comments by the Foreign Ministry spokesman came in the backdrop of the face-off at the Line of Actual Control. Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian, during a briefing, also said that China's position on border related issues is clear and consistent.

"We have been following the important consensus reached by the two leaders and strictly observing the agreements between the two countries," he said, apparently referring to the directions of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi after their two informal summits, asking the militaries of the two countries to take more confidence building measures to maintain peace and tranquillity along the borders.

The foreign ministry's remarks came a day after President Xi ordered the military to scale up the battle preparedness, visualising the worst-case scenarios and asked it to resolutely defend the country's sovereignty.

TRUMP OFFERS TO MEDIATE

In a surprise move, US President Donald Trump on Wednesday offered to "mediate or arbitrate" in the raging border dispute between India and China, saying he was "ready, willing and able" to ease the tensions, amid the continuing standoff between the militaries of the two neighbours. Trump had previously offered to mediate between India and Pakistan on the Kashmir issue, a proposal rejected by New Delhi which maintains that there is no role for any third party in bilateral issues.

"We have informed both India and China that the United States is ready, willing and able to mediate or arbitrate their now raging border dispute. Thank you!" Trump said in an early morning tweet