BEIJING: Putting a lid on recent Chinese incursion in Ladakh, India and China on Friday decided to ramp up bilateral business, political and strategic ties while revisiting the mechanisms to settle the vexed border dispute.
“We talked about positive things that are far-reaching and rewarding for both of us,” External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said after meeting Chinese premier Li Keqiang.
The atmospherics said it all. Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi greeted Khurshid with a warm embrace as the two met at the ornate Purple Room in Zhongnanhai, the headquarters of the Chinese government, in the presence of Premier Li. “I did not plan it … May be, he also saw something in me,” Khurshid said suggesting it was a spontaneous gesture.
Li said simultaneous development is of “strategic importance to the two countries” while Khurshid and Wang agreed to carefully examine the mechanisms for solving the border dispute. “Put another way, without the simultaneous development of China and India, there won’t be prosperity in Asia,” Li told the visiting Indian minister.
The two countries wanted to take a fresh look at the existing system of boundary negotiations including the 10-year-old mechanism of special representatives. Beijing submitted a proposal for border cooperation agreement. The issue will be discussed on Saturday when senior Indian military officer Y.K. Joshi and Gautam Bambawale of the ministry of external affairs meet their Chinese counterparts.
“In both my meetings, I requested that each one of us will have some takeaway in the manner in which the (border) issue was brought to conclusion. Is there a dimension for us to work further so it does not happen again?” Khurshid said referring to the incursion in Ladakh. He said the incursion episode was “a reflection of our differing perceptions of the line of actual control”.
The two sides stressed on establishing a strategic and cooperative partnership. “This requires broadening the interaction between our societies, encouraging more intense cooperation while addressing such differences as we may have. This expresses itself in many facets, whether it is trade and investment, culture or tourism, or on political and security issues. To make it happen, our leaders need to display vision and commitment, our systems need more engagement and our people need stronger understanding,” Agencies quoted Khurshid as saying at a reception hosted by the Indian Embassy.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/china/India-China-decide-to-ramp-up-ties/articleshow/19997192.cms