संबाददाता
India and China must urgently address their border disputes to improve bilateral relations, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said.
The two countries share an ill-defined, 3,440km (2,100-mile)-long border in the Himalayas, which has been a source of tension for decades.
Mr Modi made the comment during a rare interview with Newsweek magazine.
Opposition parties have often accused him of staying silent on reported Chinese incursions along the border.
In his almost 10 years in office, Mr Modi has given just a handful of interviews to the press and has not addressed a single news conference in India.
But just days before voting starts in India’s general election, the prime minister has given interviews to three news outlets – Thanthi TV and the Assam Tribune in India, and the American magazine Newsweek.
In the latest interview, Mr Modi didn’t directly comment on the opposition parties’ allegations that China had captured large parts of Indian territory. He instead talked about the importance of India’s relations with China.
He said peaceful relations between the two countries were important for the entire region and the world.
“I hope and believe that through positive and constructive bilateral engagement at the diplomatic and military levels, we will be able to restore and sustain peace and tranquillity at our borders.
“It is my belief that we need to urgently address the prolonged situation on our borders so that the abnormality in our bilateral interactions can be put behind us,” he said.
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