IndiaPost.com - India, China pledge to promote nuclear cooperation

BEIJING: India has secured a "new pledge" from China on bilateral cooperation in civil nuclear energy and they vowed to resolve their contentious boundary row in a "fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable" manner.

The two countries charted a fresh course in bilateral relations during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh "restricted meeting" with Premier Wen Jiabao and delegation level talks at the Great Hall of People which saw "incremental addition" in positions taken by Beijing on nuclear issue.

India’s "aspirations" for a seat in the UN Security Council got a boost with China giving its support while New Delhi responded positively declared its adherence to "one China" policy. Indian officials said Singh was happy at the outcome of his parleys with the Chinese leadership and claimed it went beyond expectations.

On the boundary issue, Singh said the talks were "useful" even as the two sides agreed not to allow their differences including on the boundary question to affect "positive development" of bilateral relations. Singh and Wen signed a joint statement titled "A Shared Vision for the 21st Century of India and China" which reflected the upbeat mood with the two countries seeking to build a "boundary of peace and friendship".

The desire of Asia’s two large economies to give a push to bilateral political and economic relations was reflected in the two countries signing 11 agreements ranging from Railways and Urban development to housing and land resource management. They also set a new bilateral trade target at 60 billion USD for 2010, an increase of 20 billion USD. "There is a new pledge to cooperation with India on civil nuclear energy.

This constitutes a will of both the countries to cooperate in energy area," Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon said. Indian officials saw "incremental addition" to the positions taken by Beijing in the past on nuclear and other issues and the stance adopted now as reflected in the joint statement after Singh-Wen talks.

The two sides expressed their firm commitment to resolve all outstanding differences, including on the boundary question, through peaceful negotiations while ensuring that "such differences are not allowed to affect positive development of bilateral relations". "The two sides reiterate their determination to seek a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable solution to the boundary question," the document said.

The two countries asserted that India-China relations are not targeted at any country nor will it affect their friendship with other countries, seeking to allay fears about New Delhi’s growing proximity to Washington. Stepping up their defense ties, the two sides expressed satisfaction over the conclusion of the first joint military exercise between the two countries in Kunming in China last month and decided to hold the next exercise in India this year.

The two countries also raised the bilateral trade target from USD 40 billion by 2010 to USD 60 billion seeing the rapid increase in the volume. They welcomed the idea of a Regional Trading Arrangement and mandated the Commerce Ministers to examine the feasibility study on the benefits of RTA and make recommendations at an early date.