New Delhi, Aug 18 (IANS) Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrived in New Delhi on Monday for a two-day official visit during which he will hold a fresh round of Special Representatives (SR) dialogue on the boundary question with National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and also call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
While announcing his arrival on X, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated, “Welcome to FM Mr. Wang Yi of China as he arrives in New Delhi on an official visit. Important engagements of the India-China Special Representatives and on bilateral relations over the next two days.”
On Monday, China’s Foreign Ministry asserted that Wang Yi’s India visit will help in both countries working together to implement the consensus reached between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year.
“When asked about China’s expectation regarding Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s visit to India and the 24th Round of Talks Between the Special Representatives of China and #India on the Boundary Question, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said that China is willing to take the opportunity of Wang’s visit to India to work together with the Indian side in implementing the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, maintain the momentum of high-level exchanges, enhance political mutual trust, strengthen practical cooperation, properly manage differences, and promote the sustained, healthy, and stable development of China-India relations,” Chinese Ambassador to India, Xu Feihong posted on X highlighting the comment made during Monday’s regular media briefing in Beijing.
The meetings could see both sides deliberate on a range of key issues, including the border situation, trade and resumption of flight services.
The Chinese Foreign Minister will hold discussions with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and also call on Prime Minister Modi on Tuesday. The meeting assumes significance as it will take place before PM Modi’s visit to China to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin later this month.
This will be PM Modi’s first visit to China since the Galwan clash in 2020, which severely strained bilateral ties. The breakthrough in bilateral talks, first after the Galwan Valley faceoff between the soldiers of the two countries at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in June 2020, was made possible after India and China reached an agreement on patrolling along the nearly 3500-km LAC to end the four-year-long border confrontation.
In July, EAM Jaishankar visited China to attend the SCO Meeting of the Council of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs in Tianjin. He also held discussions with his Chinese counterpart on the sidelines of the meeting and called on Xi Jinping along with his fellow SCO Foreign Ministers.
Earlier in June, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh visited China to attend the SCO Defence Ministers Meeting. India had refused to endorse the joint declaration at the SCO Defence Ministers’ meeting, citing the exclusion of concerns around terrorism as a key reason.
During his visit, Singh met his Chinese counterpart, Admiral Don Jun, and the two leaders had a “constructive and forward-looking exchange of views” on issues related to bilateral ties.
In the same month, NSA Ajit Doval also visited China to attend the 20th Meeting of the SCO Security Council Secretaries. In his intervention at the meeting, he highlighted the need to shun double standards in the fight against terrorism and take decisive actions against UN-proscribed terrorists and entities like LeT, JeM and their proxies and dismantle their terror eco-systems.
–IANS
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