Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks at the Council on Foreign Relations. (Associated Press)
China and India are both competent to find a solution to their border problems through dialogue and there is no need for arbitration, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at the Council of Foreign Relations in New York on Monday.
In answer to a question on whether India would accept arbitration to solve the longstanding border problem, he said the two neighbours understand that there is a dispute. "No arbitration required with China on the Border Issue. We are in direct talks and are agreed upon solving the problem urgently," Mr Modi said.
In his address to the council, Mr Modi said, "Some say the 21st century belongs to China, others say India. They are all agreed that it belongs to Asia, Mr Modi said.
But, he said, India has three things that give it an advantage no other country has in the world. "We have three things that no one else has - democracy; demographic division and demand," Mr Modi said pitching India as a land of opportunity.