New Delhi, Sept 26: In their second interaction in three months, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee would be meeting his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao in Bali next month, on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit. A senior member of the new Chinese leadership will also be visiting India in November as part of the new momentum in the Sino-India relationship. Disclosing this at a function here today to mark the 54th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Chinese Ambassador to India Hua Junduo said the Sino-India relationship was in a "healthy state" and hoped steps being taken by both sides following the historic visit by Vajpayee in June this year would further consolidate bilateral ties. Observing that Vajpayee's visit to China had achieved "mutually beneficial and win-win results", Hua said a series of measures were to be taken by the two countries to improve bilateral cooperation in various fields as a follow up to the documents signed during the visit by the two countries. The Chinese envoy said the special representatives of the two countries, entrusted with the task of exploring from the political perspective the framework of a boundary settlement, would be meeting but declined to say when. During Vajpayee's visit, National Security Advisor Brajesh Mishra and the senior-most Vice-Minister in the Chinese Foreign Ministry Dai Bingguo were appointed as special representatives for this purpose. Stating that there was an increase in the people-to-people contacts and greater two-way flow of tourists, Hua said a direct air link between New Delhi and Shanghai will be operational from December 01. "We shall, as always, actively develop friendly relations with India and other surrounding nations with a view to enhancing mutual understanding and expanding cooperation," he said, adding that the new Chinese leadership was continuing to pursue an independent foreign policy of peace.
Significantly, Hua made a special reference to the contribution made by Congress prime ministers Rajiv Gandhi and P V Narsimha Rao in carrying forward the bilateral ties to new heights.
Recalling the chinese saying "when drinking water, you should not forget who dug the well", he said "we cannot help remembering Indian friends from various parties and all walks of life" who have contributed to the "vibrant momentum" of bilateral ties seen today.
He said Gandhi's "historic" journey to China 15 years ago and the reciprocal visit by Chinese Premier Li Peng created the momentum which was taken forward by Rao who visited China in 1993, when the two sides signed an agreement on maintaining peace and tranquility in the border areas.
He noted that Congress President Sonia Gandhi had traveled to China twice "taking there the amicable sentiment of the Indian people towards the Chinese people."
Bureau Report