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Sino-Indian ties have global impact- Li
May 11, 2013, 9:34 am

Salman Khurshid (left) and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi [Xinhua]

Salman Khurshid (left) and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi [Xinhua]

China has sought to stress on the global impact of Sino-Indian ties during the Indian external affairs minister’s visit to Beijing.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, after his meeting with Salman Khurshid ,said China’s new leadership regards ties with India as one of Beijing’s most important foreign relations.

“Friendly cooperation is central to China-India relations and common interests outweigh differences,” Li said.

Li urged the two countries to inject new vitality into the economies of Asia and the world.

China is India’s second largest trading partner.

Both nations have set a trade target of $100 billion by 2015.

Returning to New Delhi from his Beijing visit, Indian external affairs minister addressed a press conference saying that India-China are working on a new border defence co-operation agreement, adding that China has made suggestions on border protocol.

A strongly-worded editorial in the official Xinhua cautioned western media and international analysts “fixated on border spats” miss the grander picture of ties between the two developing nations.

“The Western media’s hype of the so-called “Dragon-Elephant” rivalry ignores the historical fact that both Beijing and New Delhi are longtime advocates of the rights and interests of developing nations.”

The two nations also have a shared responsibility of ensuring stability in the region and their official dialogue on Afghanistan earlier in April this year have led to a coordination of position in the lead up to the 2014 withdrawal of NATO forces.

In an article for The BRICS Post, senior Indian journalist and political analyst Amit Baruah writes that India and China must move towards resolving their border dispute – once and for all.

“Squabbles between India and China are the last thing that would lead to the creation of a more equitable world order,” he wrote.

The Chinese Premier arrives in India on May 19 and has told Indian officials on Friday that his decision to make India the destination of his first overseas visit was “carefully thought out”.

The BRICS Post