India is likely to raise contentious issues like China’s “hold” on Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Azhar Masood’s sanctioning by the United Nations Security Council committee and its objections to New Delhi’s membership application for the Nuclear Suppliers Group when the two countries sit across the table for their first meeting of the Strategic Dialogue.
The India-China Strategic Dialogue meeting will be co-chaired by Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar and the Executive Vice Foreign Minister of China on February 22 in Beijing. This dialogue mechanism was agreed to during Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s visit to India in August 2016.
“The two sides are expected to discuss all issues of mutual interest in the bilateral, regional and international domain,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup said on Thursday.
There are several friction points between India and China and the Strategic Dialogue is going to be one among several other mechanisms that the two countries have to work out their difference and explore new avenues of cooperation. Sources said the Strategic Dialogue will be a more comprehensive mechanism to help two countries take a holistic view of their relationship and explore to what extent the two countries can accommodate each other’s concerns and interests.
Meanwhile, Jaishankar will visit Colombo from 18-20 February and Dhaka on 23-24 February to hold talks with his counterparts and review areas of bilateral cooperation. In lanka, the FS will interact with top for discussions on possibilities of collaboration in a number of sectors including power, highways, airport, hydrocarbon sector, etc.