China skips mention of sticky issues

Beijing silent on issues like Delhi’s NSG bid, ban on Masood

China said on Thursday that its strategic dialogue with India was of “positive significance” to ties as “extensive agreements” were reached, but skirted any reference to the persisting differences over issues like India’s NSG bid and efforts to get JeM chief Masood Azhar banned by the UN.

“The dialogue has reached the goal as expected and is of positive significance to the bilateral relations,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said.

China said on Thursday that its strategic dialogue with India was of “positive significance” to ties as “extensive agreements” were reached, but skirted any reference to the persisting differences over issues like India’s NSG bid and efforts to get JeM chief Masood Azhar banned by the United Nations.

“The dialogue has reached the goal as expected and is of positive significance to the bilateral relations,” Chinese foreign ministry

Spokesman Geng Shuang told a media briefing here, giving his assessment of foreign secretary S. Jaishankar’s talks with Chinese officials, which included the first round of the upgraded strategic dialogue.

“Our overall impression is that this strategic dialogue was held in a friendly atmosphere. The two sides held (an) in-depth and comprehensive exchange of views and reached extensive agreements,” he said, without elaborating.

The two sides had an indepth and comprehensive exchange of views on international situation, domestic and foreign policies, bilateral relations and other regional and international issues of mutual interest and reached extensive consensus, Mr Geng said.

The dialogue has reached the goal as expected and is of positive significance to the bilateral relations

Chinese foreign ministry

He, however, made no reference to the persisting differences over China blocking India’s admission into the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) and efforts to get JeM chief Azhar banned by the UN.

In his briefing to the media after the dialogue on Wednesday, Mr Jaishankar had said both the issues figured in the talks.

On the Chinese foreign ministry calling for “solid evidence” to get Azhar banned, Mr Jaishankar had said, “In the case of Azhar, Jaish itself is proscribed under 1267. So the proof is in (the) 1267 Committee action. In this case what he has done, extent of his actions are well-documented.”

“On the NSG issue, the Chinese side underlined that they are open to India’s application for membership. They have their view of procedures and processes. These were different from where we are at the moment and most of the group is at the moment,” Mr Jaishankar had said.