BEIJING: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi praised his Indian counterpart
S Jaishankar
‘s recent comments disapproving of European centralism and his assertion that China-India are “perfectly capable” of managing their ties, saying his remarks reflected New Delhi’s “tradition of independence”.
In his first meeting with Indian Ambassador to China Pradeep Kumar Rawat on Wednesday, Wang said that the two countries should work in the same direction to maintain the warming momentum in China-India relations and bring them back to the track of stable and sound development at an early date.
The two sides should work together to cope with various global challenges, and safeguard the common interests of China, India and the vast developing countries, he said in comments posted on the Foreign Ministry website.
“Recently, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar publicly expressed his disapproval of European centralism and objections to external forces meddling in China-India relations. That reflects India’s tradition of independence,” Wang told Rawat.
In an interactive session at a conference in the Slovakian capital Bratislava on June 3, Jaishankar said Europe has to grow out of the mindset that its problems are the world’s problems but the world’s problems are not Europe’s problems.
India has a difficult relationship with China but it is “perfectly capable” of managing it, Jaishankar had said, rejecting the European construct that New Delhi’s position on Ukraine could impact global support to it if its problems with Beijing increase.
Rawat, who met Wang ahead of Thursday’s BRICS summit, emphasised the “criticality of maintenance of peace and tranquillity in the border areas”.
He made a “courtesy call” on Wang on Wednesday at the Diaoyutai State Guest House here – his first meeting with the Chinese Foreign Minister after he took charge as India’s new envoy to Beijing in March, a press release issued by the Indian Embassy here said on Thursday.
Wang told Rawat that China and India are two great ancient Oriental civilizations, two major emerging developing countries, and two neighbouring major countries.
“China-India relations, which draw worldwide attention and public concern in the two countries, bear on the well-being of the 2.8 billion people of the two countries and whether the world can truly achieve justice, equality and harmony,” he said.
“The common interests between China and India far outweigh the differences. The two sides should bear in mind the overall interests of bilateral relations, help each other succeed instead of engaging in attrition, strengthen cooperation instead of guarding against each other, and enhance trust instead of being suspicious of each other,” he said.
He put forward “four-pronged perseverance” on China-India relations. First, persevere in the important strategic consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries that “China and India are partners rather than rivals, and are not threats to each other but opportunities for each other’s development”.
Wang said the two countries should persevere in putting the boundary issue in an appropriate place in bilateral relations and seeking solutions through dialogue and consultation.
He said the two sides should persevere in continuously injecting positive energy into bilateral relations, fully leveraging the traditional strengths of cultural and people-to-people exchanges, and continuously expanding mutually beneficial cooperation.
Lastly, Wang said India and China should persevere in expanding multilateral cooperation, joining hands to revitalize Oriental civilizations, coping with the complicated world together, and opening up a brighter future for mankind.
