China and India have extensive common interests and they have far more consensus than differences, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Indian counterpart Sushma Swaraj as they met here on the sidelines of the BRICS Ministerial Conference.
Swaraj and Wang attended the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) Foreign Ministers' meeting yesterday.
During their meeting, the two leaders discussed ways to maintain the momentum in bilateral and multilateral cooperation. The meeting took place more than a month after an informal summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Wuhan.
China and India have extensive common interests, and they have far more consensus than differences, Wang was quoted as saying by state-run Chinese news agency Xinhua.
China and India working together will accelerate the common development of the two countries, benefit the entire world, and contribute to the progress of human civilisation, Wang, who is also the Chinese State Councilor, said.
The two sides should take bilateral relations and people's fundamental interests as a starting point at all times, properly handle problems and differences, and prevent the interests of one party from affecting the overall interest, he said.
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China and India should earnestly safeguard peace and tranquillity in the border areas in accordance with the consensus reached by their leaders and avoid taking actions that might complicate and aggravate the situation, Wang said.
The two nation should strengthen coordination and play a constructive role in promoting the development of BRICS cooperation, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and other multilateral mechanisms, he said.