The Hindu

India, China to cooperate on nuclear energy

November 22, 2006

Amit Baruah

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Chinese President Hu Jintao have agreed that an early settlement of the boundary question will advance the "basic interests" of the two countries, and it should be pursued as a "strategic objective."

The Special Representatives dealing with the boundary issue "shall complete at an early date" finalising an "appropriate framework" for a "final package settlement," Dr. Singh and Mr. Hu said.

A joint declaration was issued at the end of three-and-half hours of talks between the two leaders in "restricted" and delegation-level formats at Hyderabad House here on Tuesday. Thirteen agreements on a wide swathe of subjects were signed.

In a major advance, the two sides agreed to promote cooperation in nuclear energy, consistent with their international commitments. They agreed that "international civilian nuclear cooperation" should be advanced through innovative and forward-looking approaches, while safeguarding the effectiveness of global non-proliferation principles.

The two leaders set a target of enhancing bilateral trade to $40 billion by 2010, decided to hold regular summit-level exchanges in each other's country and on multilateral forums, open new consulates in Kolkata and Guangzhou, and set up an "expert-level mechanism" to discuss issues relating to trans-border rivers.

Both Dr. Singh and Mr. Hu emphasised that India-China relationship was of "global and strategic significance." Strategic partnership with a similar worldview was consistent with their roles as two major developing countries, the declaration said.

"Both sides hold the view that there exist bright prospects for their common development, that they are not rivals or competitors but are partners for mutual benefit. They agree that there is enough space for them to grow together, and play their respective roles in the region and beyond, while remaining sensitive to each other's concerns and aspirations," it said.

While Dr. Singh told the press that he had "cordial, open and constructive talks" with Mr. Hu, the Chinese President described their discussions as "friendly and candid."

"President Hu and I have agreed that the positive development of India-China relations in recent years must be made irreversible," Dr. Singh said.

As part of the 13 accords, China agreed to provide India a plot of land for constructing a Consulate-General in lieu of the old Indian consulate property in Shanghai.

Agreements on bilateral investment protection and promotion, a protocol on cooperation between the Foreign Ministries, a memorandum on commodity futures regulatory cooperation, and a protocol on phytosanitary requirements for exporting rice from India were also signed.

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