"It is unwise and inappropriate for the Indian side to insist on linking the border situation with bilateral relations," spokesperson Wu Qian told a monthly press briefing.

A senior Indian official told Reuters earlier this month that India could ease its heightened scrutiny of Chinese investments if the two countries' border remained peaceful, the first signal that the four-year-old curbs could be lifted.

(Reporting by Laurie Chen in Beijing; Writing by Greg Torode in Hong Kong; Editing by Alex Richardson)