Prime Minister Narendra Modi will make his maiden visit to China in May. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, who is on a three-day visit to Beijing, discussed Modi’s visit plans with the Chinese Government on Sunday. The exact dates will be announced later.
“Modiji is going to come in May. This is a preparatory visit,” Sushma said in Beijing. It is speculated that Modi will also be visiting Kailash Mansarovar through the new route via Nathu la. Besides, Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to take Modi to Xian, capital of his home province Shaanxi. Modi had hosted the Chinese President in Ahmedabad.
While on one side Modi’s visit to China is a reciprocal call to President Xi’s visit to India in September last year, it is also seen as an attempt to balance India-China relationship in the wake of bonhomie created between India and the US during President Barack Obama’s recent India tour.
In the midst of report that Obama and Modi spent a great deal of time discussing the growing influence of the Dragon, the Chinese media had carried critical stories about the outcome of the visit. In fact, ahead of Sushma’s visit to China, too, articles in Chinese official media carried critical commentaries accusing Obama of attempting to create a wedge between China and India to contain the Communist nation’s influence in the region.
However, in a balancing act, Swaraj met Wang Jiarui, Minister, International liaison Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and discussed party-to-party relations with the BJP. She is accompanied by new Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar, among other senior Ministry officials. “We expect that the momentum that has been set in the last few months would not only be kept up but accelerated event further at various levels,” Swaraj said.
Meanwhile, setting stage for Modi’s visit to China, Swaraj said that India is committed to an early settlement of the boundary dispute between the two countries. Swaraj said India-China relations have considerably progressed which is evident by the expanding Defence ties. “On the boundary question, my Government is committed to exploring an early settlement. We have made considerable progress in establishing and expanding defence contacts and exchanges, including across our border. They contribute to the maintenance of peace and tranquility there, a pre-requisite for the further development of our relationship,” Swaraj.
On Sunday, Swaraj met her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi. “How are you, my friend WangIJ” she said as she shook hands with her Chinese counterpart before the talks, in a display of warmth and friendship. A range of bilateral issues, including implementation of Chinese commitment to invest $20 billion in industrial parks and cooperation to modernise the Indian Railways, are expected to be discussed during the meeting. Besides, China’s promise to address the $38 billion deficit in over $70 billion trade in 2014 was also expected to feature during the talks.
Amid concerns over the widening trade deficit, India hoped that China will open up its market to Indian companies and promised to make it easier for Chinese firms to do business in India. “A critical change in nature of our bilateral ties over the last few decades has been its growing economic dimension. China is today our largest partner in trade in goods. The two economies are moving to invest each other,” Swaraj said. “Serious discussions on enhancing connectivity have been initiated. On that foundation, we are now seeking to take our economic cooperation to a qualitatively new level,” she added.
Swaraj said the ‘Closer Development Partnership’ agreed upon during President Xi Jinping’s visit to India in September last year symbolises the resolve to enhance economic ties. She said a significant new area of collaboration include railways sector where the two countries are cooperating in areas like heavy haulage, speed upgradation, station development and capacity building.
“Another major thrust is in establishing industrial parks in two Indian States that would contribute to the Make in India initiative. We will make it easier for Chinese companies to do business in India and expect that similar encouragement would be given to our companies to expand their business in China,” she said.
India and China also exchanged notes on modalities for opening the second route for the Kailash-Manasarovar Yatra in Tibet via Sikkim by June that will allow more Indians to undertake the pilgrimage. “India-China exchange notes on modalities for additional route for Kailash Manasarovar Yatra in 2015,” MEA spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin tweeted.