China wants to maintain "hard-won sound" ties with India: President Xi

In a markedly toned-down version of the bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the ongoing G20 Summit, state media, quoting the President, said: “He said both sides had seen healthy, stable and speedy development of their relationship, and that as neighbours and developing countries, they should continue high-level exchanges.”

China on Sunday said it wants to maintain the “hard-won sound relations” with India and work on deepening synergy and handling bilateral differences.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Chinese President, Xi Jinping during a bilateral meeting in Hangzhou, China on Sunday. (PTI)

In a markedly toned-down version of the bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the ongoing G20 Summit, state media, quoting the President, said: “He said both sides had seen healthy, stable and speedy development of their relationship, and that as neighbours and developing countries, they should continue high-level exchanges.”

The official news agency, Xinhua, did not mention any of the issues brought up by Modi during their meeting such as terrorism, China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) or for that matter the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) issue.

Instead, the official statement used the rare phrase “hard-won” sound relations to describe what Xi thinks of the bilateral ties.

It was possibly used to indicate that both countries were working hard to maintain steady ties despite differences.

The only indication that problems plaguing the relations could have been discussed was the line that said Xi told Modi that the two countries “should respect and care for each other on issues of major concern, and handle differences in a constructive way.”

“China and India should continue dialogues at various levels and in various areas, and frequently exchange views on major issues of common interest to enhance understanding and trust,” Xi said.

He proposed that the two sides strengthen people-to-people exchanges and promised that China would continue to encourage Chinese companies to invest in India.

Xi told Modi that China would deepen cooperation with India to jointly contribute more to world economic growth and better global governance within the G20 framework, and support India's efforts to host the upcoming BRICS summit.