Question : VISIT OF CHINESE PRESIDENT

(a) whether the Chinese president visited India recent and if so, the details of the bilateral talks held, MOUs signed, areas of co-operation identified and steps envisaged for further strengthening of relations between the two countries;

(b) whether issues regarding alternate route for Kailash-Mansarovar Yatra, incursions by Chinese soldiers, disputed map published recently, illegal occupation of Indian territory etc. came up for discussion during the said visit, if so, the details in this regard alongwith the reaction of Chinese side thereto;

(c) whether any concessions have been granted to China to garner its support at the multilateral level in the area of trade and commerce including negotiations at the WTO and if so, the details thereof; and

(d) the effective steps envisaged to be taken to resolve the various issues through bilateral talks for further strengthening relations between the two countries?

THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS [GEN. (DR) V. K. SINGH (RETD)]

(a) to (d) Chinese President Mr. Xi Jinping paid a state visit to India from 17 to 19 September 2014. During the visit, President Xi Jinping met with President Pranab Mukherjee and held talks with Shri Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India. A total of 16 agreements were signed during the visit in various sectors including, commerce & trade, railways, space-cooperation, pharmaceuticals, audio-visual co-production, culture, establishment of industrial parks, sister-city arrangements etc. The two sides also signed a MoU to open an additional route for Kailash Mansarovar Yatra through Nathu La. The Chinese side agreed to establish two Chinese Industrial Parks in India and expressed their intention to enhance Chinese investment in India.

The two sides discussed full range of issues in the bilateral relationship, including political and security issues, economic relations and people-to-people contacts. Prime Minister raised concern over repeated incidents along the border. The two leaders agreed that peace and tranquility in the border region constitutes an essential foundation for mutual trust and confidence and for realizing the full potential of our relationship. It was suggested that clarification of Line of Actual Control would greatly contribute to the efforts to maintain peace and tranquility.

India and China have common interests on several multilateral issues of global importance like climate change, WTO, reform of the international financial institutions etc. This is reflected in close cooperation and coordination between the two sides within the BRICS, G-20 and other fora. There are regular meetings between India and China at various levels, including at the highest level.

Both sides are committed to resolving bilateral issues through dialogue and peaceful negotiations and in a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable manner.