New Delhi: Chinese Foreign minister Wang Yi said Beijing was ready to work with India to enhance mutual understanding and strengthen bilateral relations.
Wang on Tuesday met National Security Advisor Ajit Doval at the 25th meeting of the Special Representatives on the India-China boundary question.
During the talks which focused on the long-standing boundary dispute and India-China relations, Wang said the two countries were important neighbours as well as major developing countries and representatives of emerging economies, according to a Chinese press release.
“The healthy and stable development of China-India relations serves the fundamental interests of the two peoples, meets the common aspirations of Global South countries, and accords with the trend of the times. China-India relations have gone beyond the bilateral scope and carry global and strategic significance,” Wang stated.
Recalling meetings between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Kazan and Tianjin, Wang stressed that those discussions paved the way for improvement in bilateral relations.
“China is ready to work with India to approach bilateral relations from a strategic height and long-term perspective, strengthen communication, enhance mutual understanding, eliminate differences, overcome obstacles, and become good neighbours and friends of amity as well as partners for mutual success, so as to realise the dance of the dragon and the elephant,” the Chinese Foreign minister expressed.
Doval said India and China are ancient civilisations and important economies, adding that they are partners for cooperation rather than rivals. He noted that India-China relations are back on the right track, and the overall situation in border areas has remained peaceful.
Doval said India was willing to further strengthen strategic communication with China, expand mutually beneficial cooperation, deepen multilateral coordination, effectively manage the border areas and accelerate the development of India-China relations.
Both sides reaffirmed that they will seek a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable package solution to the boundary question through dialogue and consultation, and jointly maintain peace and tranquillity in the border areas.
The bilateral discussions are expected to create a positive atmosphere and de-escalate border tensions ahead of Xi Jinping’s visit to India for the BRICS Summit on September 12-13.
