NEW DELHI, June 22: Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee said on Sunday India would await the outcome of talks between Pakistan President Gen Pervez Musharraf and US President George W. Bush, to be held at Camp David on June 24.
Before embarking on a six-day visit to China, the prime minister told the newsmen at airport what he described: “Our concerns are on cross-border terrorism which should stop. Our friends have agreed with us on this score.”
Responding to a question on his expectations from the Musharraf-Bush talks, he said: “Let us see what emerges out of it and what measures follow.”
To a question about China’s close ties with Pakistan, Mr Vajpayee said he had talked with Chinese President Hu Jintao in St Petersburg in Russia recently and he was looking forward to holding wide-ranging discussions with top Chinese leadership, including his counterpart Wen Jiabao.
India accorded “top priority” to its ties with China, he said, and added that his government wanted to tackle the new challenges and move on the road to progress in co-operation with Beijing.
The prime minister said: “I am confident that the visit would have a positive outcome. My message to China is that of friendship.”
To a query about the boundary issue, Mr Vajpayee said: “Talks have been taking place with China on this issue and we want to take them forward.
“While talks are taking place on the border question, we are also focusing on how to move ahead in other areas of our relationship with Beijing.”
Mr Vajpayee said he believed that his discussions with the new Chinese leadership would help in building better understanding and trust between the two sides. “There is a compelling geographical, political and economic logic for close relations between our two countries,” he further said.
In a departure statement, Mr Vajpayee said: “I hope to see for myself the remarkable economic transformation that China has undergone over the past decade.”—APP
