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We adopted constructive stance: Yang

Special Correspondent

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi

NEW DELHI: China has no competition with India and it wants to “move beyond doubts” to craft a strategic and cooperative relationship with New Delhi. It had made clear its intention to support India before the final draft was circulated at the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) meeting in Vienna.

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi made these observations after a lecture here on Tuesday.

Mr. Yang said China had settled its policy for the NSG meeting before President Hu Jintao left for Korea on August 26.

He said:

“The NSG thing was not on my mind. The policy was settled long before I accompanied the President on the trip to Korea. The policy is very simple. We fully understand the desire of India to make full use of nuclear energy. You import 75 per cent of your oil requirements and it is all the more urgent to make full use of nuclear energy.

“We adopted a responsible and constructive approach when this was discussed at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) meeting.

“Then, following the NSG statement on civilian use by India, China adopted a constructive attitude. Before a consensus was reached, we had made it clear in a certain way that we had no problem with the draft statement. It was as simple as that.”

‘Disappointed’

The Chinese Foreign Minister said he was in for a “shock” on his arrival in Kolkata and reading news reports about China’s attempt to play a spoiler at the NSG meeting.

“Talking to newspersons, I said emphatically that facts speak louder than reports. I hope both sides will further deepen ties and each side would be sincere in crafting a strategic and cooperative partnership. Let us move beyond doubts to work for a stronger partnership,” he observed.

Mr. Yang preceded his reply by thanking the audience for the question.

“Otherwise I would have felt disappointed. This talk [about China’s opposition at NSG] adds some colour to my visit,” he said.

‘Tide will lift both boats’

Asked whether a competitive dimension would emerge between China and India, he did not visualise any real competition in the “fundamental sense,” and referred to statements by the Indian political leadership to assert that Asia was big enough to accommodate the rise of both countries.

“A rising tide lifts all boats. In this case, the rising tide will lift boats of both countries. If we work together, Asia will make bigger strides together,” he said.

Earlier, he enlivened his lecture with extempore remarks. Pointing out that he had read much about India, Mr. Yang hoped he would in future be able understand the nuances of cricket. “That has been my failure,” he said.

Recalling his meeting with Abhinav Bindra, India’s first gold medallist in an individual event at the recent Olympics, he said Beijing had been a lucky destination for Indian sportsmen, and hoped they would win more medals in future.

Mr. Yang said that during his meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday, he extended Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’s invitation to him to visit Beijing for the seventh Asia-Europe meeting next month.

Mr. Hu had invited his Indian counterpart Pratibha Patil to visit China next year, Mr. Yang said.

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