New Delhi and Beijing are looking beyond boundary dispute for greater economic cooperation ahead of the second BRIC summit later this year. This was stated in Guwahati on Saturday by Union Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor.
BRIC expands to a bloc Brazil, Russia, India and China had formed at Yekatarinburg (Russia) in June last year primarily to challenge US dominance.
“The 21st century is about looking beyond boundary hassles for mutual economic growth, and India and China are doing just that,” said Tharoor at a function in Guwahati to release twin books titled ‘Naturenomics’ by Assamese entrepreneur Ranjit Barthakur.
Tharoor’s statement was in reference to Beijing’s claim on some 90,000 sq km of Indian territory that includes Arunachal Pradesh. It assumes significance following Union Home Minister P Chidabambaram’s assertion (during his visit to Tawang) on April 2 that “Tawang and other areas of Arunachal Pradesh are integral parts of India”.
Tharoor said India’s boundary dispute with China dates back to the 1950s. “There have been several rounds of talks without any solution, but this is the age of going beyond geographical disagreements,” he said.
The Sino-Indian boundary issue is unlikely to crop up at the next BRIC summit.
