China ready to back India for Security Council seat

Beijing, Feb 18 : China is ready to back India's claim to a permanent seat in the UN Security Council and the two countries should completely shed the past to evolve a new friendly relationship, a leading Chinese daily said Friday.

Writing in the China Daily, commentator Fang Zhou said the world's two most populous nations have for a long time shown a willingness to shoulder more responsibility and play larger roles in the regional and international stages as their influence surges, Xinhua reports.

When China's Vice-Foreign Minister Wu Dawei and India's Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran sat together for a "strategic dialogue" in New Delhi Jan 24-25, the two countries were pushing their bilateral relations on to a new stage.

The launching of the first "strategic dialogue" mechanism fully demonstrates that the two neighbours have raised relations above a lingering and plaguing border dispute that once plunged their relationship into an icy period, Fang wrote.

At the talks, the Chinese side expressed its understanding of India's wish to pursue a permanent seat in the UN Security Council and supported India in playing a bigger role in the international arena.

At this meeting of historical significance, both sides did not camouflage their strong desire to look beyond bilateral disputes and develop and upgrade ties in a global perspective.

They stressed the importance of reforming international institutions, including the UN and its Security Council.

The strategic talks were aimed at broadening the scope of Sino-Indian relations while providing both with a platform to exchange notes on regional and global issues of common concern.

Among the topics discussed were globalisation, energy security, democratisation of international relations, reform of the UN, non-proliferation, steps to counter terrorism and the situation in Iraq and on the Korean peninsula.

The two sides briefed each other on foreign and security policies and reached common ground on a wide range of issues.

Both sides regarded the possibility of weapons of mass destruction and sensitive technologies falling in the hands of terrorists as "a grave threat." And both recognised the importance of international cooperation instead of unilateral actions to combat global dangers.

The strategic dialogue was a key step forward in developing and deepening bilateral ties under the two neighbours' unambiguous strategy for larger engagement with each other.

Beijing and New Delhi's repetition of their unequivocal stance that they advocate democratisation of international relations and multi-polarity was undoubtedly conducive to promoting a more democratic and peaceful international society that can more efficiently handle the challenge created by globalisation, Fang wrote.

Since the 1962 border clash, which saw bilateral relations enter an abyss, Beijing and New Delhi had for many years made sluggish progress in the process of contacts and misgivings.

However, since then Indian prime minister Atal Behari Vajpayee's visit to China in June 2003 -- during which the two countries vowed to promote a long-term constructive and co-operative partnership -- compromised bilateral ties have been back on the way of rapid restoration and improvement.

The flourishing bilateral relations in recent years have undoubtedly laid a consolidated foundation for a strategic dialogue mechanism between the two countries.

The two countries have since then been engaged in discussions to resolve the lingering thorny boundary dispute, with special representatives holding several rounds of talks.

Also, during the January talks, both sides reached an agreement on the next round of talks to be held in China on mutually agreed dates and necessary preparations for a visit to India by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao set for March, which is expected to mark a new phase in bilateral ties.

In economic fields, trade and investment are booming, with the total trade volume exceeding $12 billion by November last year, according to the China General Administration of Customs.

Bilateral military relations, in particular, have been rapidly boosted in recent years. Following then Indian defence minister George Fernandes' visit to China in 2003, the two countries have conducted frequent military training exchanges and contacts.

Late that year, Indian naval ships paid a visit to Shanghai and held with the first joint military exercises the Chinese forces.

That year, Wu Quanshu, deputy chief of the general staff of the People's Liberation Army of China, visited India. Last year, Chinese Defence Minister and Vice-Chairman of the Central Military Commission Cao Gangchuan went to India.

And late last year, then Indian Army chief, Gen. N.C. Vij paid a weeklong visit to China -- the highest-ranking Indian Army official to visit the country in a decade. The move added much mutual trust to bilateral military ties and injected new vitality into the overall Sino-Indian relations, Fang said.

He said China and India have good reasons to discard past enmity and join hand-in-hand for the sake of themselves and others. The world's two largest developing countries share a similar history and are eager to rejuvenate themselves under a peaceful international and internal environment to become more important actors in the international community.

Both countries have adopted an independent foreign policy and share common or similar views and stances on numerous major international issues. Both are exploring and pursuing a development model suitable for their own national conditions.

More importantly, the two neighbours are economically complementary and can benefit much from making good use of each other's advantages.

Fully aware of a wide space for cooperation, the two countries have on many occasions reiterated their wishes to improve ties at all levels and in all areas while addressing their outstanding differences, including the boundary dispute, in a negotiable, fair, reasonable and mutually satisfactory manner.

"We hope that, with India's cooperation, we will be able to solve the border issue so that bilateral ties will witness faster development on a new basis," Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Kong Quan said following the first round of strategic dialogue.

The Indian side echoed the stance. "We are doing so in a purposive and mutually acceptable manner and we look at our relations in a larger regional and global backdrop," India's External Affairs Minister K. Natwar Singh said Jan 27 at the Seventh Asian Security Conference.

With their global clout increasing, the two countries have been conscious that consolidated mutual trust and cooperation between them serve as crucial elements that can make the region and the whole of Asia vibrant and energetic for growth.

And there is also an expanded consensus in the minds of decision- makers in Beijing and New Delhi that the two countries have enough space and opportunity in the region and beyond to develop and boost ties.

The establishment of the "strategic dialogue" mechanism shows the two neighbours have overcome the old mindset that two key regional players would inevitably compete and struggle for "scope of influence" and "geopolitical interests".

There are reasons to expect that the two Asian heavyweights will further advance the strong momentum of stable and sound good neighbourly ties under a larger scope following the first strategic talks, said Fang.

Russia will remain the largest arms supplier to India & possibly China for a long time,but their share of the market is slipping & it will continue to do so as everyone is interested in diversifying.In the mid-90s,Russia supplied close to 80% of military systems,now it's more like 60%.IN China's case the slip maybe all the more larger as China has a very large indegnious military industry which can benefit vastly from European expertise.

well for india,the biggest criteria for purchasing weapons is better(or even best) technology.Russians have really improved their tech and they are cheaper(and sometimes better) than the western tech.

and anyways india has the option to buy from any nation it chooses(except china ofcourse).

And regarding relations,china and india definitely have better relations than what they had a few years ago and their trade is improving.But trade always is not a major indicator in good relations.
take for instance
1)china-usa trade=$210 billion
2)china-japan trade=$240 billion (somewhere close)

Trade is imp. Relations with china were much worse in the old days when there was little trade.

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