New Delhi: In their second meeting in less than four months, India’s foreign minister S. Jaishankar countered with ‘three mutuals’ after Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi suggested ‘four principles’ as the basis for improving relations that have been in deep freeze due to a two-year-long military stand-off at the border.The two ministers met on Thursday on the sidelines of the G-20 foreign ministers meeting in Bali, Indonesia. Their last encounter was in March this year when Wang Yi visited India.According to the Ministry of External Affair’s readout, Jaishankar reiterated the call for an “early resolution” of the remaining friction points along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh.Since May 2020, Indian and Chinese armies have been at loggerheads at several points of the boundary’s western sector, which led to deadly clashes. While the flashpoints of Galwan, Pangong and Gogra have seen both sides climb down and disengage, the stand-off continues at Depsang and Demchok.Began my day in Bali by meeting FM Wang Yi of China. Discussion lasted one hour.Focused on specific outstanding issues in our bilateral relationship pertaining to the border situation. Also spoke about other matters including students and flights. pic.twitter.com/NYl0Gh451v— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) July 7, 2022When the new Indian ambassador Pradeep Rawat called on Wang Yi in June, the state councillor and foreign minister proposed four principles – “four-pronged perseverance” – as the foundation for Sino-Indian relations. A key point in Wang’s principles was putting the boundary question at an “appropriate place” in the relationship. It was a reflection of the Chinese position that New Delhi should not let the border issue overshadow relations.India has, however, repeated that the relationship could not develop unless the border issue is resolved.Jaishankar told the Chinese minister that the “India-China relationship is best served by observing the three mutuals – mutual respect, mutual sensitivity and mutual interests”.The Chinese foreign ministry readout on the meeting issued on Thursday night also had its version of the three ‘mutuals’. “We should take practical actions to implement the important consensus of the leaders of the two countries on ‘mutual cooperation, mutual non-threat, and mutual development opportunity’ and promote the early return of bilateral relations to the right track,” Wang Yi said, as per the press release issued in Beijing.The Indian foreign minister had previously referred to these three mutualities during a lecture in January this year. He had also listed “eight broad propositions” for stabilising the bilateral relationship.While Wang’s principles asserted that the border issue should be relegated to an “appropriate” place, Jaishankar had noted that if peace and tranquility at the boundary were disturbed, “so inevitably will the rest of the relationship”.A day before the meeting, India’s Enforcement Directorate had conducted raids on the offices of a Chinese telecom major over foreign exchange rule violations, which had irked Beijing.The action against Vivo is being seen as part of India’s steps to tighten checks on Chinese entities in the backdrop of the military stand-off in Ladakh.The Chinese foreign ministry’s readout does not record any observation from Wang Yi on the border issue. Instead, the only mention of the situation at the border was in the context of the Indian minister having allegedly appreciated “positive progress in maintaining border stability”.The Indian MEA statement said that Jaishankar did note the progress in disengagement, but added that the momentum needs to be sustained to “complete disengagement from all the remaining areas to restore peace and tranquility in the border areas”.“He reaffirmed the importance of fully abiding by bilateral agreements and protocols, and the understandings reached between the two Ministers during their previous conversations,” said the MEA statement.Jaishankar, as per the MOFA press note, also that Wang Yi that India was “willing to work with the Chinese side to send a clear message to the outside world, promote the process of improving relations, and translate the consensus and vision of the leaders of the two countries into reality”.The Chinese also underlined that Jaishankar reportedly asserted that India will continue to adhere to strategic autonomy and stand independent in international affairs”.The Indian readout stated that the two ministers agreed that the military and diplomatic talks should be held regularly and looked forward to the next round of the senior commanders’ meeting at an early date. However, this was not mentioned in the official Chinese version of the meeting.The other bilateral issue that Jaishankar raised, as per the MEA readout, was the return of Indian students to China. “EAM stressed the need for expediting the process and facilitating the return of students on an early date,” it said.Jaishankar also tweeted that they “shared perspectives on the international situation and its impact on the G20 deliberations”. This is likely a reference to the Ukraine war, whose economic fallout would be a part of the G-20 agenda. Western countries are also trying to ensure that Russia does not participate in the G-20 meetings, but that has not yet been successful.Note: This article, first published at 3:27 pm on July 7, was subsequently updated on the same day with the details from the Chinese foreign ministry’s readout.