Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan told visiting Indian counterpart Jaswant Singh here Friday that China is expecting the formal visit of Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to China later this year.
He said that bilateral relations had maintained a high momentum,and Premier Zhu Rongji's visit to India January had further promoted ties between the two countries.
Such reciprocal high-level visits should be maintained, Tang said.
Both China and India, the two largest developing countries in the world, have broad common interests in advancing the multi-polarization process, protecting interests of developing countriesand working to forge a new international order, said Tang.
Both countries should strengthen mutually beneficial economic cooperation, while actively promoting the process of resolving border issues through negotiations, Tang stressed.
Singh, who came to Beijing by the first flight from India to China Friday, said that both India and China should not view each other as threat because they do not have fundamental interest conflicts, but face the common challenges of wiping out poverty and developing their economies.
He said that both countries should further increase cooperationin international affairs against hegemonism and power politics.
Singh also stressed that India would, as always, hold to the principle of "one China" and would never allow the Dalai Lama Tibetan clique to launch political activities in its territory.
Both foreign ministers discussed details on solving remaining historical issues between the two countries, and reached consensus.
( March 30, 2002)