AGREEING TO DISAGREE: ENDING THE DOKLAM STAND-OFF
The separate announcements by India and China that the Doklam military stand-off(गतिरोध/तटस्थ बनाना) has ended are a welcome sign that diplomacy has prevailed(प्रचलित होना/प्रबल होना) over the harsh rhetoric(वाक्पटुता/वाक्चातुर्य) of the past 10 weeks. The measured(नपा-तुला) tone of the statement from New Delhi,referring(हवालादेना/संकेतकरना) to the “expeditious(शीघ्र/चुस्त/फुर्तीला) disengagement(छुटकारा/मुक्ति/अवकाश) of border personnel” as part of the understanding between the two countries, shows that the government’s policy of pursuing diplomatic measures in the face of China’s angry rhetoric was wise. In turn, China’s statement, which said that Indian troops had withdrawn from the disputed Doklam plateau while Chinese troops continue to patrol the area, gives Beijing the latitude(अक्षांश/विस्तार/स्वतंत्रता) it requires to end the stand-off peacefully. The differing versions and the lack of further information leave several questions unanswered about the terms of the disengagement. But the very fact that both countries have been able to issue statements — even if they were designed to satisfy their domestic audiences — suggests that in diplomatic negotiations, each took into account the other’s constraints(प्रतिबंध/बाध्यता/बहुत अधिक नियंत्रण). In issuing statements that wereinconsistent(असंगत/अनुचित/परस्पर-विरोधी) with each other, both sides seem to have agreed to disagree. To that end, the importance lies less in the detail but in the détente(अमन/दो देशों के संबंध सुधारना) itself, in the decision by the leaderships of both countries to pull back(रोक लेना/पीछे हट जाना) from what some feared couldescalate(ख़राब करना/बढ़ाना/तीव्र करना) into a full-blown(पूर्ण विकसित) conflict(विरोध/संघर्ष). In this, it must be noted that New Delhi and Beijing have respected the wishes of the Bhutanese government, which wanted an early end to the crisis before the bitter(कड़ाके की/बहुत ज्यादा) winter set in.Also Read Timeline: the story of the Doklam stand-off One hopes the decision on Doklam, which comes a week before Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to go to China, will guide the bilateral(द्विपक्षीय) spirit(स्वभाव) beyond the September 3-5 BRICS summit to be held in Xiamen. Once Mr. Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping have met, diplomats must begin the heavy lifting required to repair the rupture(टूट जाना/संबंध खत्म करना) in ties over the past few months, beginning with the cancellation of the Nathu La route for Kailash-Mansarovar pilgrims. Statements from China during the stand-off indicate that it no longer recognises the gains made in the Special Representative(प्रतिनिधि)talks in 2012. Nor does it regard the India-Bhutan-China tri-junction near Batang-La to have been settled. India has made it clear that it does not consider the Sikkim boundary settled either, and both sides will have to walkswiftly(तत्काल/स्फुर्ति से) to come back to some semblance(आकृति/दिखावा/झलक) of an accord on such basic issues before they can move further. India and China must revert(फिरलौटआना) to the spirit of the Border Defence Cooperation Agreement of 2013, which laid down specific guidelines on tackling(काबू में करना) future developments along the 3,488-km boundary the two countries share. The past two and a half months are also a lesson that India cannot be unprepared(अप्रस्तुत/अनिच्छुक) for “another Doklam”, as Chief of the Army Staff Bipin Rawat said on Sunday. India must necessarily “hope for the best, and prepare for the worst”, when it comes to tensions with its northern neighbour.
1.Prevailed(प्रचलित होना/प्रबल होना)
Synonyms:- triumph, dominate, predominate, endure, persist
2.Rhetoric(वाक्पटुता/वाक्चातुर्य)
Synonyms:- hyperbole, oratory, eloquence, fustian, elocution
3.Latitude(अक्षांश/विस्तार/स्वतंत्रता)
Synonyms:- freedom, scope, leeway, flexibility, liberty
4.Constraints(प्रतिबंध/बाध्यता/बहुत अधिक नियंत्रण)
Synonyms:- restriction, limitation, damper, rein, hindrance
5.Escalate(ख़राब करना/बढ़ाना/तीव्र करना)
Synonyms:- intensify, step up, mount, inflate, expand
6.Rupture(टूट जाना/संबंध खत्म करना)
Synonyms:- breach, break, falling out, severance, bust
7.Semblance(आकृति/दिखावा/झलक)
Synonyms:- appearance, show, facade, pretense, likeness, illusion
