THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar in Kerala on Tuesday said that national security was the number one priority of the Narendra Modi government. He made the statement while discussing the present border stand-off with China in East Ladakh sector.

While national security undoubtedly is the priority, staying the course is the other attribute that defined the foreign policy of the PM Modi government. Whether it is China, Ukraine or Pakistan, Modi government takes a stand and sticks to it unlike the governments of the past and doesn't swayed by opinions orchestrated in the media or polls.

The discussion that took place on July 7, 2022, in Bali outside of the G20 Foreign Ministers' meeting between Jaishankar and Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi serves as a prime example of this policy.

 The news announcement from India differs significantly from the one from China. The Minister has called for the restoration of the April 2020 status quo along the 1597 km Line of Actual Control in East Ladakh, underscoring the importance of boundary resolution to the entire bilateral relationship in the Indian news release.

According to the Chinese interpretation, Jaishankar brought up the boundary standoff in passing as if it were a minor issue in the context of the larger India-China bilateral relationship, which is showing indications of reviving momentum. The Modi government is committed to the April 2020 status quo ante as the only path towards the restoration of bilateral ties, unlike in the past when the full contours and ramifications of the 2013 transgression in the Depsang Bulge in Daulet Beg Oldi (DBO) sector were kept secret from the public in the overall context of bilateral ties.

The Modi government has also decided to stay the course and not budge from it despite all pressures, much like the Chinese seek recognition of the "One China Policy" in every bilateral meeting and frequently issue their own version of the meeting (except when dealing with client states like Pakistan). The directive to all Indian diplomats dealing with China makes it quite clear that India will uphold its claimed Ladakh Line of Actual Control in this extremely sensitive area and will not budge, exactly as China has done since 1959.

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