January 22, 2011 3:03:23 am
Kick-Starting his five-day visit to China,BJP chief Nitin Gadkari on Friday asked Beijing to put pressure on Pakistan on which it has a great influence to stop exporting the terror machine to India. During his talks with Chinese leaders,he also broached the matter of issuance of stapled visa by China to people of Jammu and Kashmir and Arunachal Pradesh and construction of dams on the Brahmaputra.
Gadkari on a first-ever visit by a BJP chief to China in what is seen by many in the party as a personal initiative to boost his profile held discussions with Ai Ping,the Chinese Vice-Minister in the International department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and met senior Communist party leader Li Changchun. He identified certain issues which are creating hurdles in improving ties between the BJP and the CPC.
According to the BJP,he conveyed the partys serious concern over Pakistan-sponsored cross-border terrorism and pointed out that there was a strong public opinion in India against Beijings development projects in the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Chinas continued military assistance and the supply of nuclear reactors to Pakistan and Chinese incursions into the Indian territory are other areas of concern.
On the issue stapled visa,he asked the Chinese leaders to resolve the matter at the earliest and spoke about the apprehensions in India about China constructing dams on the Brahmaputra. According to the BJP,the Chinese leaders shared Gadkaris concern over terrorism and said Beijing understands the importance of all the issues raised by him.
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