PM Modi with President Xi Jinping at the East Lake in the morning as the two took a walk followed by a boat ride. (Source: Twitter/MEAIndia)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday met Chinese President Xi Jinping at the East Lake where the two leaders had a brief walk followed by a boat ride. The two-day “informal summit” between India and China focussed on discussions over terrorism, climate change and developing a mutual relationship to build a stronger Asia. Briefing the media at the end of the two-day trip, Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale said, “The two leaders (Modi & Xi) underscored that it is important to maintain peace along India-China border region & decided that they will issue strategic guidance to their respective militaries to strengthen communications & to build trust & understanding.”
On arriving in Wuhan province on Thursday, the Prime Minister had held discussions with Xi for nearly two hours on the first day of their “informal summit”. Xi had expressed hope that they will reach a “common, new and important understanding that will help take our relationship to the next level”. The Prime Minister is visiting China for the first time since the re-election of Xi, following the removal of Constitutional term limit.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Chinese President Xi Jinping visit an exhibition at Hubei Provincial Museum, in Wuhan, China on Friday. (PTI)
Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Kong Xuanyou said China does not think it is important whether India accepts China's Belt and Road infrastructure project and China won't force it to. Kong, speaking to reporters in the central Chinese city of Wuhan after an informal summit between the leaders of China and India, also said China does not think the Indian government has changed its official position that Tibet is a part of China, news agency Reuters reported.
READ | Narendra Modi-Xi Jinping meeting: How Chinese media reacted to the ‘informal’ summit
After completing the two-day "informal summit" PM Modi has now emplaned for home and will arrive at New Delhi.
They believe that the simultaneous emergence of India and China as two large economies and major powers with strategic and decisional autonomy, has implications of regional and global significance. They shared the view that peaceful, stable and balanced relations between India and China will be a positive factor for stability amidst current global uncertainties. Prime Minister Modi and President Xi reviewed developments in India-China relations from the strategic and long-term perspective. They agreed to significantly enhance efforts to build on the convergences through the established mechanisms in order to create the broadest possible platform for the future relationship, the government said in a statement ahead of PM Modi's departure from China.
“I am very pleased to meet with President Xi Jinping in Wuhan. We conducted extensive and fruitful talks and exchanged opinions on strengthening India-China relations and other international issues,” Modi said in a post in the popular Chinese social media Weibo, where he has 1,83,112 followers.
Prime Minister Modi tweeted the pictures calling it a "memorable boat ride on the beautiful East Lake." (Source: Twitter/NarendraModi)
As per the understanding, officials of both sides will identify the project in following up discussions and work out modalities. This will be a first such project in the war-torn country where China while trying to expand its influence has tacitly backed Pakistan, which has been accused by Afghanistan and the US of backing the Taliban and its most violent attacks in the country destabilising any attempts to restore peace.
Visuals from Prime Minister Modi's early morning boat ride in the East Lake of Wuhan with President Xi Jinping. (Source: Twitter/MEaIndia)
Proposals forwarded by PM included moving ahead to find ways to collaborate in terms of entertainment including films & President said he has seen a no. of Indian films & it would be a good idea to expand this. More Indian films should come to China & vice-versa.
On the issue of India-China boundary question, the two leaders (Modi & Xi) endorsed work of the special representative to find a fair reasonable &mutual settlement. The two leaders (Modi & Xi) underscored that it is important to maintain peace along India-China border region & decided that they will issue strategic guidance to their respective militaries to strengthen communications & to build trust & understanding: Foreign Secretary
The two head of state during their meetings and discussions talked about climate change and looked at the possibility of a global network to address such challenge. The PM and Chinese President identified terrorism as a major problem and talked about enhanced cooperation in fighting the menace, said Foreign Secretary.
"In the last 2,000 years of history, India & China have given momentum or pace to world economy and our 2 countries contributed 50 pc of the world economy… rest of the world was restricted to remaining 50 pc… so much impact and influence for 1600 years. You have rightly said that we, as responsible leaders, represent 40 per cent of the world’s population, and this is not just a meeting of two leaders, but I see it from the perspective of a historic and cultural legacy."
"We also need to make positive contributions to global peace and development… I believe, in the future, we will meet in a format like this from time to time. I look forward to having in-depth communication with your excellency, let's partner with each other to build an Asia in the 21st century that enjoys stability, development and prosperity," Xi told Pm Modi.
Foreign Secretary Vijay Keshav Gokhale is likely to articulate the government’s takeaways after the summit Saturday at noon. (9.30 am IST).
Prime Minister Modi and President Xi Jinping took a boart ride in the East Lake after their walk, where the PM extended an invitation to Xi to visit India for a summit in 2019.
PM Modi during his walk with president Xi Jinping invited the Chinese premier to India for a summit in 2019.
The two leaders are meeting at the East Lake in Wuhan, and taking a walk along the shoreline.
“Dear PM, Saw the live TV feed of your ‘No Agenda’ China visit. You look tense! A quick reminder: 1. DOKLAM. 2. China Pakistan Eco Corridor passes through POK. That’s Indian territory. India wants to hear you talk about these crucial issues. You have our support,” Rahul tweeted.
“In the past three years and more, you and I have exchanged visits, have met each other a number of times in multilateral occasions. We have jointly guided the growth of India, China relations and have seen that it has maintained good momentum,” Xi said. Without mentioning the trust deficit, the Chinese President said, “Our two countries have established a closer developmental partnership, our exchanges and cooperation in various fields have made positive progress… China and India have a combined population of over 2.6 billion, with an enormous potential for technology development and domestic market.”
In remarks after two hours of conversation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the first day of their “informal summit” in Wuhan, Xi expressed hope that they will reach a “common, new and important understanding that will help take our relationship to the next level”. Officials from both sides indicated that they were working on a new framework, described as a “modus vivendi” or arrangement to bridge the strategic trust deficit. While a joint document is not being ruled out, Foreign Secretary Vijay Keshav Gokhale is likely to articulate the government’s takeaways after the summit Saturday.
Here is the schedule for PM Modi in Wuhan on the second day of his visit. These are local timing, China is 2.30 hours ahead of India.
1000-1030hrs - East Lake Walk with President Xi (East Lake Guesthouse Complex)
1030-1130hrs - Boat Ride with President Xi (East Lake)
1140 - 1240 - Lunch hosted by President Xi for PM.
Hello, and welcome to The Indian Express LIVE blog as we cover the day two Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to central China's Wuhan province as part of an ïnformal summit" with the Chinese President Xi Jinping.