Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday Moscow welcomed contacts between its close allies India and China after a deadly border confrontation.
President Vladimir Putin has close ties with both Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian premier Narendra Modi, who has talked of a "special chemistry" with the Russian strongman.
Lavrov said at a press conference that "it's already been announced that military representatives of India and China have been in contact, they are discussing the situation, discussing measures for its de-escalation. We welcome that."
China and India have traded blame for Monday's high-altitude brawl that left at least 20 Indian soldiers dead, with China refusing to confirm so far whether there were any casualties on its side.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists: "Both China and India are very close partners for us, allies."
"We are paying close attention to what is happening on the China-India border," he said, calling reports on the clashes "very concerning."
He said that Russia nonetheless believes China and India "are capable by themselves of taking steps so that such situations do not happen again... and so that this region is safe for the peoples of China and India."
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