In a statement issued Friday, the Defence Ministry said the two ministers held in-depth discussions in Qingdao on the need to maintain peace and tranquillity along the Indo-China border. It said that Singh acknowledged the work being undertaken by both sides to bring back a semblance of normalcy in the bilateral relations, while stressing border management and the need to have a permanent solution to border demarcation by rejuvenating the established mechanism on the issue.

“He also called for bridging the trust deficit created after the 2020 Border standoff, by taking action on the ground. The two Ministers agreed to continue consultations at various levels to achieve progress on issues related to disengagement, de-escalation, border management and eventual delimitation through existing mechanisms,” it added.

This is Rajnath Singh’s second engagement with his Chinese counterpart since October 2024, when both sides agreed to disengage in eastern Ladakh after being engaged in a military standoff for more than four years.

Thursday’s meeting was his fourth bilateral meeting with a Chinese defence minister.

Before this, Singh has held three bilateral meetings with Chinese Defence Ministers since 2020, including one in September 2020 in Moscow, and in April 2023 in New Delhi — both on the sidelines of the SCO Defence Ministers’ Meeting — and the third in November 2024 in Vientiane, Laos, on the sidelines of the 11th ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus.

In his meeting with Admiral Jun, he also emphasised the need to create good neighbourly conditions to achieve the best mutual benefits as well as to cooperate for stability in Asia and the world.

He further highlighted the important milestone of reaching 75 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. He also appreciated the resumption of the Kailash Manasarovar yatra after a gap of five years.

He also briefed Admiral Dong on the heinous terrorist attack carried out against innocent civilians in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, on April 22, and India’s Operation Sindoor aimed at dismantling terror networks in Pakistan.

Singh also held a bilateral meeting with Russian Defence Minister Andrey Belousov on the sidelines of the SCO Defence Ministers’ Meeting, where the supply of S-400 systems, Su-30 MKI upgrades, and procurement of critical military hardware in expeditious timeframes were discussed between the two sides.

As per the Defence Ministry, the meeting held in the backdrop of Operation Sindoor was crucial, with the consequent necessity of augmenting defence production being discussed between the two sides, especially in critical items such as air defence, air-to-air missiles, modern capabilities, and upgrades of air platforms.

The two ministers held in-depth discussions on a range of subjects, including current geopolitical situations, cross-border terrorism and Indo-Russian defence cooperation.

“The Russian Defence Minister highlighted that the long-standing Indo-Russian relations, which have stood the test of time and expressed solidarity with India on the horrendous and cowardly terrorist act of 22nd April in Pahalgham, Jammu & Kashmir,” a separate defence ministry statement said.

Singh also held bilateral meetings with the Defence Minister of Belarus, Lieutenant General Victor Khrenin, the Defence Minister of Tajikistan, Lieutenant General Sobrizoda Emomali Abdurakhim, and the Defence Minister of Kazakhstan, Lieutenant General Dauren Kosanov.

He highlighted the importance of continued engagement in defence cooperation and exploring new opportunities for collaboration in areas of technical collaboration, while speaking about the rapid advances made by India in the field of defence production and achieving self-reliance in meeting its defence requirements in several key areas.

The ministers agreed to continue cooperation to enhance capacity building, training, military technical cooperation, military education, amongst other areas of common interest, the defence ministry said.-Agencies