Modi, Xi sign off with pledge to ease strain
WUHAN SUMMIT India, China to exercise restraint on border, work together in Afghanistan
WUHAN : Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping on Saturday agreed on steps aimed at strengthening communications and building trust between the militaries of India and China, a move aimed at effectively managing differences on the border and averting a Doklam-like stand-off.
At the end of their first informal summit in this central Chinese city, the two leaders also reached an agreement on jointly implementing an economic project in war-torn Afghanistan — a clear indication of their desire to play a larger role in shaping the regional security scenario.
At separate briefings after the summit, neither foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale nor Chinese vice foreign minister Kong Xuanyou mentioned last year’s Doklam standoff, but it was clear the two leaders favoured strategic restraint along the 3,488-km border and did not want a repeat of the face-off that sent ties plummeting.
Modi and Xi met six times since Friday afternoon, four of which were one-on-one sessions, with officials describing it as a meeting of equals. There were also acknowledgements that the two sides were prepared to deal with differences and each other’s concerns.
The two leaders issued a “strategic guidance to their… militaries to strengthen communication in order to build trust and mutual understanding and enhance predictability and effectiveness in the management of border affairs”, an Indian statement said.
INDIA HAS HAD A LONG PRESENCE IN DEVELOPMENTAL WORK IN AFGHANISTAN AND HAS PROVIDED BILLIONS OF DOLLARS
BEIJING: India and China will, for the first time, implement a joint economic project in war-torn Afghanistan, officials said on Saturday at the end of the two-day informal summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping.
No details were immediately available about the project but people familiar with the decision said the two leaders reached a consensus on working together for the development of Afghanistan. This is probably the first time India and China will work together on a developmental project in a third country.
India has for long had a presence in the development sector of Afghanistan and has provided billions of dollars for building and refurbishing vital infrastructure such as dams and highways.
China is emerging as a key player in Afghanistan, largely because of Beijing’s security concerns linked to terror groups such as al-qaeda and the Islamic State. The path ahead for the India-china project will be diplomatically tricky as Beijing will have to convince its close ally Islamabad about it. Pakistan has always opposed any Indian presence in Afghanistan and has tried to position itself as the main player in any peace or reconciliation process.
China and Pakistan were part of a quadrilateral process along with the US and Afghanistan that was involved in trying to bring the Taliban to the negotiating table. Despite several promises by Islamabad, it was never able to get the Taliban leadership to commit to any sort of peace process.
While India’s leadership has never publicly spoken about involving the Taliban in a peace process, China has advocated a key role for the militants in talks.
China, for the first time, held a trilateral meet with the foreign ministers of Pakistan and Afghanistan in December 2017 to narrow down differences between the two countries. It has also announced plans to extend its controversial China-pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to Afghanistan.
In December, Pakistan’s proposal to establish working panels in politics, military, intelligence, economy and refugees with Afghanistan was supported by China.
“The three countries reaffirmed their commitment to pushing forward the reconciliation process in Afghanistan, calling on the Taliban to join in the process...” Xinhua news agency reported after the foreign ministers of the countries met.