| He was referring to the controversy over Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee's observation that the Chinese had 'invaded' India in 1962. Yuxi said India and China were now partners, 'not enemies'. |
| Leaving behind the past which had made China oppose Japan's - and therefore India's - entry to the UN Security Council as permanent members, Sun revealed that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would meet Chinese president Hu Jintao in New York later this month on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session to discuss bilateral ties and review progress on talks to resolve the boundary question and other issues. |
| Speaking at a press conference held to mark the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), Sun said the two countries were trying their best to develop a forward-looking relationship. "We will make sure that what happened in history will never happen again," he said. |
| "Tibet is no longer an issue" between India and China, Sun said, adding the Nathu La pass would be opened for trade, 'sometime in the middle of next year'. Experts from the two sides would meet very soon to discuss issues like connecting roads and setting up facilities relating to customs, immigration and related areas. The perception is that while India wants this road to be opened quickly, China still has to complete a 40-50 km stretch of road construction on its side. |
| Asked if China has any timeframe in mind to resolve the protracted boundary question, Sun said the next step in the discussions would be on actual border demarcation. This is expected to be taken up during the talks between National Security Advisor MK Narayanan and Chinese envoy Dai Bingguo. "We hope more positive results will emerge," he said. |
| There was need to have 'closer cooperation' between the two countries to deal with cross-border crimes among other things, Sun said. |
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