 "India, China signal thaw in border row")
To address the issue of India's widening trade gap with China, it was decided India would be given greater access to the Chinese market.
After a second round of talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang since the latter's arrival here yesterday, both sides took stock of the "lessons learnt" from the recent tension across the border and agreed to explore innovative ways to settle the matter.
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The two country's governments on Monday signed as many as eight agreements - on service trade promotion, sharing of hydrological information of the Brahmaputra River, creating linkages between Indian and Chinese cities, among other issues.
"With regard to the boundary question, one that is left over by history, the two sides have over time established the principles. We need to place the various border-related mechanisms and make those more efficient. We need to appropriately manage and resolve our differences… We are good friends but I will not deny that there are some problems in certain areas," Li said at a joint press conference with Singh.
Li, who appeared calm and composed, firmly said both sides needed to "confront issues with a broad mind" and deal with some of the controversial issues, such as border disputes, trade imbalance and sharing of water of the trans-border rivers in a "mature and sensible way".
Expressing "satisfaction" over the outcome of his meeting with Li, Singh said negotiators from both sides would meet soon to settle the border issue by signing an agreement. Both sides have been seeking to settle the issue for more than two decades.
Recurring incidents of tensions along the border have severely affected the economic relationship of the rapidly growing Asian economies. Last financial year, India had suffered a trade deficit of around $27.26 billion with China, compared with $21.29 billion in 2011-12 and $12.43 billion in 2010-11, according to commerce ministry data.
In the joint statement, the countries agreed to address the trade deficit problem by giving India greater access to the Chinese market. Indian companies have not been able to gain enough foothold in that country compared with their Chinese counterparts here.
Li and Singh also vowed to fasten the process of 'strategic economic dialogue' while evaluating the potential for a bilateral regional trade arrangement and review the state of negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
Later during the day, Commerce Minister Anand Sharma met his Chinese counterpart Gao Hucheng to review possibilities of investments, SEZ-related matters, coordination at the World Trade Organization's Bali summit and RCEP issues.
The two sides also had their first ever joint CEOs' forum, chaired by Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani. The forum identified five key areas of cooperation - manufacturing, energy & resources, finance, high-tech industry and culture industry. Ambani urged the Forum to expand the rupee-RMB-dollar trade to reach the initial limit of $1 billion set by the Reserve Bank of India. He also sought more Chinese investments in India and highlighted the need to get more Chinese companies in the insurance sector here.
KEY AGREEMENTS
Indian official pilgrimage
- The Kailash Mansarovar Yatra to be conducted every year from May to September
- China to make improvement to facilities on the route, maintain smooth communication, assist in renting wireless sets and local SIM cards
- Services Trade Promotion Working Group
- Economic and Trade Planning Cooperation
- Trade Statistical Analysis
- Aims to enhance bilateral cooperation in the field of water efficient technology, with applicability in agriculture and exchange of best practices
- Both sides agree to identify sister cities & sister states/provinces in India & China
- Idea is to establish relationships in areas of mutual interest and enhance greater people-to-people contacts