PM Modi and Chinese president Xi Jinping hold informal talks in Wuhan, China (AFP)
Highlights
- PM Modi on two-day visit to China for "informal summit" with Xi Jinping
- Leaders expected to have "heart-to-heart talks" on many subjects
- Only interpreters were present during talks today, will continue tomorrow
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a two-day visit to China, has met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Wuhan, the capital of the Chinese province of Hubei. On the first day of his visit, PM Modi was welcomed by President Xi with an impressive cultural performance at the Hubei provincial museum. Only two interpreters were present at the first informal meeting between the two leaders. President Xi took PM Modi on a tour of the museum, after which delegation level talks were held with six representatives from each side.
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Seeking to make the informal summit an annual affair, PM Modi said he would be happy to host President Xi for another such round of talks in India next year.
In his remarks at the delegation-level talks, PM Modi emphasized the global leadership role the "two major powers" India and China could play.
"In the last 1600 years, the economies of India and China have contributed about 50 per cent of the global economy," said PM Modi. President Xi stressed that "a good China-India relationship is an important and positive factor for maintaining peace and stability in the world".
PM Modi proposed a five point agenda for bilateral ties - common vision, better communication, strong relationship, shared thought process and a shared resolve.
On Saturday, both leaders are expected to spend more time together in one-on-one talks with just interpreters accompanying them.
PM Modi and President Xi will walk along the banks of the East Lake and take a ride on a boat together in an effort to try and cement the strong chemistry they had developed in earlier summit meetings.
There may not be any joint statement at the end of the talks and neither side wants to be bogged down by outstanding issues which remain a thorn in equations between the two nations.
The visit comes months after a standoff involving Indian and Chinese forces at Doklam when the two armies stood eyeball-to-eyeball for 73 days in the high altitude area claimed by Bhutan but occupied by China.
India has concerns about its sovereignty being affected by the China Pakistan Economic Corridor that passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Beijing has also blocked India's entry into the Nuclear Suppliers Group and has avoided declaring Masood Azhar a globally designated terrorist.
"Our talks were extensive and fruitful. We deliberated on stronger India-China relations as well as other global issues," Modi tweeted at the end of the first day of talks.
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