The Foreign Ministers of Russia, India, and China (RIC) met on the margins of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Moscow on Thursday evening to discuss strengthening trilateral cooperation as well as topical issues of international and regional importance. Notably, Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi also held their first bilateral meeting amid rising tensions along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) at the event.
During the bilateral talks, both Jaishankar and Wang expressed their stern positions on the situation, calling for a halt to provocative actions that could violate commitments made by the two sides. India also made clear that it remained deeply concerned about the “massing” of Chinese troops and equipment along the LAC and the absence of any credible explanation for the deployment.
Following the ministers’ meeting, the Chinese foreign ministry said that the two sides had reached a five-point consensus to govern their approach to the situation along the LAC after a full, in-depth discussion. Wang said that, though relations between the neighbours had once again “come to a crossroads,” if the two sides were committed to moving their relationship in the right direction, there would be no difficulty in overcoming that challenge.
The Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) also released a joint statement on Friday, outlining the five points of concurrence, which included a commitment to continue dialogue, quick disengagement, and ease tensions. They further agreed to “abide by all the existing agreements and protocol on China-India boundary affairs” to avoid any escalation and to engage in talks through the Special Representatives mechanism, and meetings of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC).
On Thursday, the leaders met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Jaishankar took to Twitter to commemorate the meeting:
Attended the RIC Foreign Ministers Meeting hosted by FM Lavrov in Moscow. Thank him for his warm hospitality. India takes on the Chair of the RIC process. pic.twitter.com/fNAFI0aaCL
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) September 10, 2020
Under the RIC framework, leaders from the three countries meet periodically to talk about issues of bilateral, regional, and international significance. The last meeting was held virtually on 23 June. The Thursday meeting saw the leaders reiterate their support for “inclusive multilateralism and respect for universally recognized principles of international law”, while also agreeing to work together to mitigate the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Russia, in an effort to preserve the sanctity of the RIC-SCO-BRICS, has used quiet diplomacy to defuse Sino-Indian tensions and urged both countries to restore stability to the region.