Epoch Times
Date: July 23, 2020
By: Venus Upadhayaya

In a move that signals a change in relations with China, India has appointed a senior diplomat to Taiwan. The move follows the standoff with China at Galwan that on June 15 escalated into the killing of 20 Indian soldiers and an unknown number of Chinese soldiers.

Previously, India, wary of China’s sensitivity over any ties with Taiwan, had appointed lower-ranking officials, and experts say this appointment is significant in showing India’s desire for more interaction with the island nation.

The just-announced envoy, Gourangalal Das, is currently handling the India–United States relationship in India’s Ministry of External Affairs​, according to a July 12 report by the Indian Express, an Indian national daily.

Dr. Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan, a distinguished fellow with the Observer Research Foundation, told The Epoch Times in an email from New Delhi: “India’s recent appointment of a new envoy to Taiwan has a message for China, one would assume. It could have been a routine affair, but the fact that India went ahead with the change in the middle of the [Galwan] stand-off is important.”   [FULL  STORY]