Kochi: India has a "fundamentally healthy"
relationship with China which goes beyond the boundary issue,
Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor said Tuesday.
"Relationship (Sino-India) should not be seen only in
the context of the problems, it should also be seen in the
context of the opportunity," he said when asked about the
just-concluded India-China border talks last week.
Tharoor said, "We are very pleased to say that, by and
large, even the fact of the border talks is confirmation that
the relationship remains fundamentally healthy."
The special representatives of India and China,
National Security Advisor MK Narayanan and Chinese State
Councillor Dai Bingguo held the 13th round of talks on the
vexed boundary issue in New Delhi on August 7.
Noting that China had recently become India's single
largest trade partner, the minister said looking at the export
and import sector without the IT services, China has overtaken
the US.
Tharoor said there was an increase in the number of
tourists coming from China to India. "A large number of
tourist VISAs are issued to Chinese tourists to come to India.
They may be discovering India as an important tourist
destination".
Asked about the reports that Pakistan had claimed the
bodies of terrorists involved in the Mumbai attacks, Tharoor
said, "Apparently there was a denial of the reports. I cannot
comment on the press reports. Some press say yes and some say
no. Until I know the facts, I cannot comment."
On a question about the status of Sarabjit Singh, who
has been sentenced to death and is in a Pakistan jail, he said
"We have expressed publicly the hope that clemency will be
given by Pakistan purely on humanitarian and compassionate
ground and the matter is in the hands of Pakistani executive
authorities."
"We hope that they (Pakistan) will act in a
humanitarian spirit," Tharoor said.
Bureau Report
First Published: Tuesday, August 11, 2009, 15:47