NEW DELHI: Chinese ambassador to India Sun Weidong on Saturday said both the countries should ‘unswervingly’ stick to the consensus reached by the leaders, complement each other instead of undercutting along with intensifying cooperation instead of harbouring suspicion at each other.
Speaking virtually at the opening ceremony of the 7th CPIFA-ICWA Dialogue, the Chinese envoy said, “We need to correctly understand and view each other to avoid any strategic miscalculation. We should enhance mutual trust through dialogue, and implement consensus through actions to bring China-India ties back on the right track of sound and steady development.”
“However, it does not mean pursuing a ‘closed-door’ development. We should embrace openness and inclusiveness. The economies of China and India are highly complementary and the essence of bilateral cooperation is mutually beneficial. We hope that India could provide a fair, transparent and non-discriminatory business environment for Chinese companies, instead of ‘erecting walls’ or pursuing ‘decoupling,’” he said.
He added, “The boundary dispute is a reality and should be given sufficient attention and taken seriously. However, the boundary question is not the whole story of China-India relations and should be put at a proper place in the overall bilateral ties. The two sides should engage in dialogue on an equal footing, manage differences and find solutions through consultation. We should not allow differences to become disputes,” he added.
As two developing countries, Weidong said, China and India share common interests in multilateral affairs. The two sides should strengthen policy coordination in the UN, G20, BRICS, SCO, China-India-Russia cooperation and other multilateral institutions, and play an active role in pandemic prevention and control, development and poverty reduction, energy security, climate change, environmental protection, food security and other major issues, he added.