A day after holding talks on all bilateral issues, including the boundary dispute, with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who is Special Envoy of the Chinese President, called on President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi here on Monday and conveyed his Government’s keenness to engage with the new Indian dispensation.
Wang called on Modi at his Race Course Road office and Swaraj was also present.
Sent here by Chinese President Xi Jinping to meet with new leadership, Wang is also understood to have conveyed China’s support for the development of India.
Chinese Premier li Keqiang was the first foreign Head of Government to call up Modi after the later took over as Prime Minister. The Chinese Prime Minister had conveyed his Government’s desire to establish robust partnership with the new Government during a call to Modi, who expressed keenness to work closely to deal with any “outstanding issues”.
Modi had also noted that China was always a ‘priority’ in India’s foreign policy and welcomed greater economic engagement between the two countries. China has already conveyed its interest in having a top Indian leader attend the 60th anniversary of Panchsheel, the five principles enunciated jointly by former PM Jawaharlal Nehru and his then Chinese counterpart Zhou Enlai in 1954.
Beijing is hosting a function to mark the occasion on June 28 in which a high-level delegation from Myanmar, which too was associated with Panchasheel, is expected to participate. When asked on Sunday if President Pranab Mukherjee will take part in the function, MEA officials said the Government was yet to take a call.
Meanwhile, China has conveyed to India President Xi Jinping’s wish to visit New Delhi. Xi and Modi will have an opportunity to meet during the next Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) Summit to be held in Brazil in July.
Incidentally, Modi has visited China four times during his tenure as Gujarat Chief Minister and his victory in the general elections was widely welcomed in the Chinese official media.
Speaking on the occasion, the President said India and China have excellent relations. The Foreign Minister’s visit will further strengthen these relations. “There is consensus across the political spectrum in India on maintaining a close and cooperative relationship with China. The new Government will strive to place the India-China relationship on a trajectory of stable growth, development and expansion,” Pranab said
The President asked the Foreign Minister to convey his greetings to the President of China and said he was eagerly looking forward to receiving President Xi Jinping in India later this year. He recalled how India and China have cooperated with each other in various international fora, including the G20, IMF, World Bank etc. in the context of the financial crisis. India and China jointly contributed to the revival of the world economy. “There is continuity in India-China relations. We must discover new dimensions in our strategic cooperative partnership and move from strength to strength,” the President added.
The Chinese Foreign Minister described the President as an old friend of China who has made important contribution to the growth of relations between the two countries.