Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday reiterated his concerns about the Indian government’s stance on China, days after alleging that External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar “does not understand the China threat”. Gandhi asserted that the Chinese troops on the borders of Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh mirrors the situation in Ukraine. He said that he had already alerted Jaishankar to this threat, but the minister disagreed it as a “ludicrous idea,” news agency ANI reported.
“In my view, the basic idea behind the troops in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh is similar to what is happening in Ukraine. I mentioned this to foreign minister (S Jaishankar) but he completely disagrees with me and thinks it is a ludicrous idea,” Gandhi said during a session at the Chatham House think tank in London to round off his week-long UK tour.
Comparing the Indian borders to that of Ukraine, Gandhi said, “The basic principle that has been applied in Ukraine is that Russia has told Ukraine that we do not accept your relationship with Europe and America and if you do not change this relationship, we will challenge your territorial integrity.”
“I think this is what is happening on the borders of my country. China doesn’t want us to have a relationship with the US. It is threatening us by saying if you continue to have a relationship then we’ll take action. That is why they have got troops in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh,” Rahul Gandhi added.
In an interview with ANI, Jaishankar recently defended India’s stand on China, asserting that it was Prime Minister Narendra Modi who deployed soldiers to the Line of Actual Control and not Rahul Gandhi.
During an interaction with journalists in London on Sunday, Gandhi expressed his approval of India’s foreign policy but voiced his disapproval of the situation with China. He also said that he had a discussion with the foreign minister.
“It was a conversation I had in a committee meeting. I can’t comment on that. But he just doesn’t understand it. He can keep saying what he wants. But the government is not understanding the actual threat from China. And a lot of commentators said this,” Rahul Gandhi said.
