Global Indian News
There has always been a touch of rhetorical excess in delineating joint statements between India and China. In 1954 when we signed the agreement on trade and intercourse with the …
Read MoreWhen Prime Minister Narendra Modi met President Xi Ginping in Beijing on Thursday, this was his third meeting with President Xi Jinping in a year. This is an achievement by …
Read MoreI am truly delighted to be at the Tsinghua University today. You are a world class institution. You are a symbol of success of China’s education sector. You are the …
Read MoreBEIJING: In an important move that is poised to boost people-to-people contacts between Asia’s leading economies, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced New Delhi’s decision to grant e-visas to Chinese tourists.
“We have decided to extend electronic tourist visas to Chinese nationals,” the prime minister said while addressing students and faculty at the renowned Tsinghua University in Beijing on May 16.
There has been a constant increase in the number of Chinese travelers visiting the other neighboring countries like Nepal, Sri Lanka and Maldives. Where Nepal saw an increase of 70 percent, Sri Lanka witnessed a surge of 130 percent Chinese tourists flocking in the countries over the last year. However, India did not get many Chinese tourists, largely due to cumbersome visa procedures. Against this backdrop, India announced ‘Visit India Year’ in China’ with an aim to attract more Chinese tourists to the country and boost its tourism revenue.
China is home to the world’s largest Buddhist population, and the e-visa scheme is expected to sharply enhance the flow of Chinese tourists to ‘Land of Buddha.”
Read MoreIndia called it a major diplomatic victory when China agreed to pull back 750 PLA soldiers engaged in an eyeball-to-eyeball situation at Chumar. The PLA may still be nibbling at …
Read MoreCooperation and competition are inextricably woven into the fabric of India-China relations. Ahead of his maiden multi-city tour of China, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken a long-range view, saying India cooperates with China on the global stage, but at the same time the two countries also compete in the economic arena.
In an interview with TIME magazine, Mr Modi also underscored that the two Asian giants have “learnt from history” and have managed to maintain peace and tranquillity on their disputed border.
Mr Modi’s three-day visit to China, starting May 14, will be keenly watched not just in the two countries, but also in the region and the world. All issues will be on the table, but the prime ministerial agenda will be primarily economic and will focus on getting Chinese finance and expertise to boost the Make in India project and to bolster the manufacturing base in India. During Xi Jinping’s visit to India in September last year, China pledged to plough in $20 billion investments over the next five years, but only around $1 billion have trickled in so far. Mr Modi will, therefore, be pitching for fast-tracking Chinese investments into India.
Many Indian prime ministers have visited abroad in pursuit of national interests, although such visits to China were few and far in between, with five PMs visiting Beijing six times in as many decades. Some of these visits – by Nehru, Rajiv Gandhi and Vajpayee – have been described as “breakthroughs” for recognising Tibet and Taiwan as a part of China, with no reciprocal Chinese statement that Kashmir or Arunachal Pradesh are a part of India.
With PM Modi planning to make a trip to China from May 14-16, the first time an Indian prime minister will be visiting Beijing in the first year of his first term, it is natural – as PM Modi told his Chinese interlocutors – to expect “concrete outcomes” during the visit. For this visit to be successful, India needs to seek several clarifications and positive approvals from China on a host of issues in the realm of bilateral relations and beyond.
During the visit of PM Modi to China, there will be a lot of pressure in both countries to make this visit a “breakthrough’ in the bilateral relations. Such a breakthrough is quite possible if India clearly draws the red, amber and green lines of interactions with China, without falling into the binary trap of whether China is an opportunity or a challenge.
Read MoreAhead of his three-day visit to China next week, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has resorted to twitter diplomacy, saying his visit will lay the foundation for developing not only bilateral relations between the two countries, but will also bolster stability in Asia.
“Looking forward to visiting China from 14-16 May to boost friendship between our 2 ancient civilizations and 2 largest developing nations,” wrote the net-savvy prime minister in his twitter post.
“Am certain that my visit to China will strengthen stability, progress and prosperity in Asia,” he added.
Mr Modi’s trip to China promises to be a landmark trip that will buttress his economic agenda in seeking Chinese investment and expertise to build India’s manufacturing and infrastructure.
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