Modi all set for landmark China visit next week

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit China from May 14 to 16, Mongolia on May 17 and South Korea on May 18- 19, the external affairs ministry said Tuesday. Mr Modi said he looked forward to “productive discussions” with China’s top leadership to strengthen stability and prosperity in Asia. This will also be the first- ever visit by an Indian PM to Mongolia.

Ahead of the PM’s China visit, the defence ministry told Parliament “there have been no incidents of infiltration by Chinese soldiers into Indian territory in the three years” but that “transgressions have occurred in the general area of the Pangong Tso lake” ( in east J& K) as “both sides undertake patrolling upto their perception of the Line of Actual Control”.

Announcing his threeday China visit on the Chinese microblogging site Weibo, which he had joined just a day earlier, Mr Modi said he was “eagerly awaiting my visit to Xi’an, Beijing and Shanghai and my productive discussions with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang”. In other posts, he said he was “confident my visit will lay the foundation for enhancing economic cooperation with China” and that “I also look forward to meeting captains of industry in Shanghai and sharing the wonderful opportunities India has to offer”.

Members of the 45,000strong Indian community in China have been invited to join an event in Shanghai to be addressed by Mr Modi, the first such by an Indian leader in China.

News agency reports from Beijing said Prime Minister Modi on Tuesday officially announced his three- day visit to China from May 14 on the Chinese microblog website Weibo, saying he is looking forward to holding productive discussions with the top Chinese leadership aimed at strengthening stability and prosperity in Asia. “Looking forward to visiting China from 14- 16 May to strengthen friendship between our two ancient civilisations and the two largest developing countries,” Mr Modi, who will be making his first trip to China as PM, wrote on the Chinese microblog that has over 500 million users. The Prime Minister, who has a hectic schedule in China, said he was eagerly awaiting his visit.

“( I) Am certain that my visit to China will strengthen stability, progress and prosperity in Asia,” he said. “Eagerly awaiting my visit to Xi’an, Beijing and Shanghai and my productive discussions with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang,” he said in another post.

“Warmly recall my conversations with President Xi Jinping and his invitation to visit Xi’an in his home province; looking forward to visiting this historic city associated with Xuan Zang ( famous Chinese Buddhist scholar) and his journey to India in his quest for knowledge,” he said.

The PM expressed confidence that his visit will pave the way for bolstering economic cooperation with China in diverse areas.