India today called for "peaceful" resolution of the spat over China's new air defence zone, which is likely to adversely impact Air India flights to Japan.
Asserting that it does not support "threat as well as use of force" in the matter, India also refused to take sides. "When you ask key people to do a dialogue, then you are on both sides," External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said.
Asked about the current controversy over Chinese Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ), the minister said, "You know our position is the standard position that we believe in this region any issue must be resolved between the concerned parties through dialogue in a peaceful way. "Both threat as well as use of force is something that we don't support. We certainly discourage that and we do continue to hope that the parties are responsible parties. They will be able to find ways to peacefully dialogue and find a solution." He was speaking on the sidelines of an energy event here.
Last month, China announced a new ADIZ and said aircraft flying through the zone must follow its rules, including filing flight plans. The ADIZ covers islands claimed and controlled by Japan, and a submerged rock claimed by South Korea.
The implementation is also likely to adversely impact Air India's Boeing 787 Dreamliners on the New Delhi-Tokyo route due to extremely narrow flight corridor being enforced by China in its airspace.
Now IA has to rework the flight path procedure to avoid the dangerous cumulonimbus clouds, which pervade the Chinese airspace and cause ice crystals to accumulate on the engine when the plane is above 30,000 feet.
Meanwhile, the US, Japan and South Korea have rejected China's ADIZ and flown undeclared military aircraft through it prompting China to harden its stance on the implementation of new defence zone over the disputed islands in the East China Sea saying its military has "unwavering" will to enforce it.
