NEW DELHI, Jan 27: India no longer sees itself in an adversarial role against China and regards as old mindset western notions of "balance of power" between the two countries , Indian Foreign Minister Kunwar Natwar Singh said in a speech on Thursday at a meeting organized by the Indian Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses.
Mr Singh, regarded as an architect of India's renewed friendship with China in 1988, suggested, without naming Pakistan, that the Sino-Indian rapprochement could be a role model for evolving improved ties with Islamabad.
India is expected to be under pressure at the Saarc summit in Dhaka next month to accept China's involvement in the South Asian group. Mr Singh's remarks are being seen as an indication of New Delhi's likely response on the issue.
"There are many who look at India-China relations with the old mindset of 'balance of power' or 'conflict of interests' and see East Asia as a theatre of competition between these two countries," Mr Singh said. "Such theories are losing relevance in today's fast-emerging dynamics of Asia's quest for peace and prosperity."
He said India and China are aware that trust and cooperation between them are one of the most crucial elements that make our region and Asia a vibrant and energetic fulcrum for growth.
"We are engaged in positive ways to expand our commonalities, while pro-actively addressing our differences, including the boundary question. We are doing so in a purposive and mutually acceptable manner," Mr Singh said. Despite the differences on the boundary issue, our 3,400 km long land border with China has largely remained tranquil over the last twenty-five years.
"This is by no means a minor achievement and should be enough to silence those who look at India-China relations only from an adversarial prism. It is for everyone to see that we have not allowed our differences to hold development in our relations across an impressive range of areas," he said.
Maj-Gen Jamshed Ayaz Khan, President of the Islamabad-based Institute of Regional Studies, is representing Pakistan at the two-day meeting organized by the Indian Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses. He will address the conference on Friday.
Mr Singh said despite the differences with Beijing, "there is also an increasingly greater realization that there is enough space and opportunity in the region for both India and China to prosper.
"We are not just passively embedded in our region bound by our common neighbourhood, but are constantly interacting through endeavours which have brought huge dividends to both.
"Look at India's trade with China. From a meagre few hundred million dollars in the beginning of the nineteen-nineties, our trade has already crossed US$ 13 billion last year. We also look at our relations in a larger regional and global backdrop and realize the responsibility we both shoulder in contributing to the well being of humanity.
"We are mindful of the overarching importance of a peaceful surrounding environment for us to pursue our most fundamental task of national development. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to India later this year will offer another opportunity to us to add further substance to our relationship, a relationship which both value," Mr Singh said.