?Don?t link repatriation of Chinese with the border situation? says China; CPC mouthpiece downplays the ‘escalation of the border disputes’ news reports #IndiaChinaStandoff

Amid media reports over the escalating border tensions between India and China, China slammed Indian media outlets for fueling a new round of irresponsible speculation that China may be preparing for an escalation of the border disputes.

The Chinese Embassy in India has announced that it would arrange special flights for its citizens that are willing to fly home from India. Some media outlets had interpreted it as an escalation of the fresh border tensions between the two countries.

Condemning the reports by some Indian media, China has clarified that the repatriation of its citizens is a normal service provided by the embassy and said, ‘it is far-fetched and misguided to link the embassy’s normal response with the border situation, which will do nothing but exacerbate distrust and antipathy toward China among the Indian public.’

“The voluntary repatriation plan should be seen as a normal service provided by the embassy to its citizens. Yet, some Indian media outlets have intentionally linked the normal operation to the recent border tension between China and India in the Galwan Valley region, fueling a new round of irresponsible speculation that China may be preparing for an escalation of the border disputes,” said Global Times, a tabloid under the auspices of the Chinese Communist Party’s People’s Daily newspaper.

The CPC mouthpiece said that any attempt to deepen the misunderstanding between the two countries’ peoples is extremely inappropriate at present. “China clearly has no intention of escalating the border disputes with India, so its assistance to its citizens should not be over-interpreted. China-India relations have been developing in a zig-zag pattern due to the complicated geopolitical situation, and the border issue may only be one of their problems. However, that should not change the overall improvement of their bilateral economic and trade ties,” it added.