145;China border issue our strategic aim146;

Describing his visit as 8220;part of the recent happy tradition of high-level exchanges8221; between the two countries, Singh said 8220;India-China relations have today transcended their bilateral dimension and have acquired global and strategic significance8221;.

On the boundary issue, he was quoted as saying that officials were engaged in discussions in order to finalise at an early date an appropriate framework for a final package settlement covering all sectors of the India-China boundary.

8220;An early settlement of the boundary question will advance the basic interests of the two countries and should, therefore, be pursued as a strategic objective,8221; Singh, who would meet Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao during his three-day visit, said. Noting that peace and tranquillity have been maintained in the border areas, Singh said India was committed to resolving differences on the boundary question 8220;through peaceful means and in a fair, reasonable, mutually acceptable and proactive manner, while ensuring that such differences are not allowed to affect the positive development of bilateral relations8221;.

During his visit, Singh said, he would exchange views on regional and multilateral issues, including UN reforms, regional dialogue mechanisms like cooperation in the East Asia summit and global issues such as combating climate change, energy security, international trade and counter-terrorism. The PM said he would seek to further promote the India-China partnership in Science and Technology and initiate several joint projects.

Singh said as the two most populous countries in the world, China and India had made development their top priority while facing various challenges, and both sides needed to exchange and draw upon each other8217;s experience.

8220;Both India and China must play our respective roles to ensure peace and prosperity in Asia and in the world.8221;

Pointing out to a 8220;growing feeling8221; in the world that rapid economic development of India and China was 8220;an international public good8221;, which benefits Asia and the world economy as a whole, Singh said 8220;our two countries have to intensify cooperation in diverse areas to sustain the momentum of rapid economic development8221;.

He noted that both countries have identical views on some multilateral challenges such as globalisation, international trade, terrorism, energy security and disaster management, saying that the two sides were cooperating in various regional and sub-regional cooperation mechanisms in Asia.

8220;We need to broad-base our interactions on all these issues so that our views and opinions are listened to by the international community,8221; said Singh, who is the first Indian Prime Minister to visit China after Atal Bihari Vajpayee8217;s 2003 trip to the Communist nation.