US wants to ensure India-China standoff doesn't escalate

Senior officials of the Trump administration said on Saturday that the US was closely watching the situation surrounding India-China standoff in Ladakh and would want to ensure that the situation does not escalate. This has come ahead of the 2+2 dialogue between India and USA.

In an online briefing, the officials said that the US welcomed India's involvement in Southeast Asia as well as in the South China Sea.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defence Mark Esper are due to come to India for 2+2 dialogue next week. They will meet India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Foreign Minister S Jaishankar.

On Friday, US State Department said that it was important to work with "like-minded" countries like India to counter China's increasing aggressive behaviour.

Speaking at the Washington Foreign Press Center, a US administration official said, "And as the United States, Japan, Australia, and India (QUAD) are getting together to cooperate on one issue or another, if there are other countries that want to participate in those discussions or those activities, the door is always open."

"Secretary Pompeo and Minister Jaishankar, along with their Japanese and Australian counterparts, met in Tokyo on October 6th for the second Quad meeting of foreign ministers. Given China`s increasingly aggressive behavior across the India-Pacific from the Himalayas to the South China Sea, it`s more important than ever that we work with like-minded partners such as India." 

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Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) is the informal strategic dialogue between India, USA, Japan and Australia. Earlier this week, India had announced the participation of Australia in the upcoming Malabar exercise alongside the US and Japan.

Talking to media persons, the State Department official said the foundational concept behind the Quad is one of the vibrant democracies working together towards a common vision of a free and open India-Pacific region. 

(With ANI inputs)