New Delhi: Bogged down by the ugly burden of a violent brawl between Indian and Chinese soldiers in eastern Ladakh’s Galwan Valley on the night of June 15, relations between India and China is at its worst in recent memory.
But on Wednesday (June 24), India’s Defence minister Rajnath Singh and Chinese Defence minister Wei Fenghe are likely to speak to each other when they are seated on the same table along with Russian Defence minister Sergey Shoigu during the Victory Parade in the iconic Red Square in Moscow.
“The defence ministers of India, China and Russia will be seated on the same table during the parade. It is perhaps being so arranged so that the India and Chinese Defence ministers can speak to each other. There will be a lot of opportunity for that,” a source told ETV Bharat.
There was no information as to whether a ‘one-to-one’ meeting was also slated between the Defence ministers of the two Asian giants.
Interestingly, the minister-level interaction between the two countries would be the second in two days after the foreign ministers S Jaishankar of India and Wang Yi of China meet on Tuesday (June 23) in a virtual conference of the Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral. The third participant would be Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov.
Of major significance is these events is the fact that Russia is possibly slipping into the role of a natural mediator as it is perceived to be close to both India and China. This is expected to enormously enhance its prestige particularly in the backdrop of US President Donald Trump’s offer to mediate between the two Asian countries and the consequent turning down of the unsolicited offer by the neighbours.
With the fact gaining acceptance that the long-standing border dispute between India and China can have no military solution, diplomatic and political moves have gained ground.
Russia’s Victory Parade was initially slated for May 9 but was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Organised in Moscow every year, the Victory Parade is held to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the victory of the Allied powers over Nazi Germany in the Second World War and to honour the heroism and sacrifices made by the people of Russia and other friendly countries.
About 13 countries—including India and China—will present military contingents at Wednesday’s event.
India has sent a 75-member contingent in an IAF C-17 Globemaster aircraft while the Chinese contingent will have 105 members who have already reached Moscow in a Chinese Y-20 heavy transport military aircraft.
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