PM Modi's visit to China 'very important' for SCO and bilateral ties: Chinese Ambassador

New Delhi, Aug 21 (IANS) Harnessing the new momentum in bilateral relations, China's Ambassador to India Xu Feihong on Thursday asserted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Tianjin to attend the SCO Summit later this month will give a fresh impetus to the improvement and development of relations between both countries.

"The visit of Prime Minister Modi to China will be a very important event not only for the SCO but for the bilateral relationship between the two countries. A working group from China and India is working very hard to make this visit a successful one. From our side, we attach great importance to this visit. It will be a very successful one," Xu Feihong told reporters on the sidelines of an event organised by Chintan Research Foundation in New Delhi.

On Tuesday, visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi, handing over a message and invitation from President Xi Jinping to the PM for the two-day SCO Summit beginning August 31.

During the meeting, Prime Minister Modi emphasised the importance of maintaining peace and tranquillity on the border, and reiterated India's commitment to a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable resolution of the boundary question.

On the same day, National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval, who held the 24th round of Special Representatives (SR) dialogue on the boundary question with Wang Yi, had also emphasised that India-China relations have witnessed an "upward trend" and that the borders have remained peaceful since the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Kazan last year.

"This time when the Chinese Foreign Minister visited India, he had a very important talk with (NSA) Ajit Doval, the Special Representative of the Indian side on the border boundary question, and they reached a very important 10-point consensus. I do not know if you have noticed this, the 10-point consensus, I think that a very important point is that two groups will be set up by our two sides regarding the border issue. One is an expert working group that will be exploring the early harvest of the border delimitation on appropriate sectors, and the second is another working group that will focus on the well-advanced proper management of the border areas," said Ambassador Xu Feihong.

While addressing the gathering at the event titled 'SCO Summit 2025 - Resetting India-China ties', which was attended by foreign policy experts, former diplomats, former Chief of Army Staff General (Retd.) M M Naravane, the Chinese Ambassador stated that China and India are partners, not rivals, who should manage differences through dialogue.

"The world today is experiencing a turbulent period. The international order is undergoing the most profound evolution since the Second World War and, at this moment of turbulence and change, the significance of China and India relations has become increasingly evident. China-India cooperation benefits both countries. We are important neighbours, major developing countries. Both countries are at the critical stage of national rejuvenation," the Chinese diplomat said in his address.

Highlighting the resumption of the Kailash Manasarovar Yatra, the Chinese Ambassador said that Beijing is willing to work with India to continue friendly exchanges in all walks of life so that people of both countries can visit each other "like relatives".

--IANS

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