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Visit of Premier Jiabao

Pakistan has a free press - they are free to criticize anything - but the vast majority of the people, institutions and the press, hold Mr Wen's visit nothing but a success.

To show dissent in the press is the sign of a healthy society, proves nothing.

May our Chinese friends continue their upward growth, to greatness and rise to global power.
 
Premier Wen underlines China’s strong support to Pakistan

BEIJING, Dec 28 (APP): Premier Wen Jiabao just concluded visit to Pakistan underlined strong support from China to Pakistan in all dimensions, said Ambassador Masood Khan. Premier Wen visit has three objectives: To consolidate and strengthen our strategic partnership, including in the defense areas; to deepen economic and trade cooperation; and to promote people to people contacts, and cultural ties. All three objectives were achieved, said Ambassador Masood Khan in an interview with Radio Pakistan. “The most important part of the visit was its symbolism. China praised Pakistan for its courageous and costly fight against terrorism, appreciated its difficulties, and called on the international community to support Pakistan,” said Ambassador Khan adding the message from Premier Wen Jiabao was that China’s bond with Pakistan will remain as stronger as ever.

He pointed out that the two sides also signalled that their longstanding relationship, in addition to the bilateral dimension, had assumed broader regional and international implications.

“We also said that we would intensify our fight against terrorism and enhance our joint efforts in the international forums, especially in regard to the Security Council Reform”, Khan observed.

The interview aired on the occasion of 3rd Anniversary of former Prime Minister Shaheed Benazir Bhuto, Ambassador Khan said, “First, on this occasion, I want to express my deepest condolences over the martyrdom of Mohtrama Benazir Bhutto. In her, we lost a great leader and a caring human being. Three years ago, a dastardly terrorist attack by terrorists deprived us of this great leader”, he noted.

On 60th years celebration of diplomatic tires between the two countries, he said that next year is the Year of Pak-China Friendship.

“We will celebrate the year by exchanges of high level visits. We are working on a series of events and activities in the political, military, economic and cultural spheres that will reflect and celebrate the unique nature of our ties. There would be symbolism; there would be substance,” he noted.

On role of young generation on strengthening Sino-Pak bonds of friendship, Ambassador Khan remarked, “Yes, a transition is taking place. The torch of friendship between Pakistan and China is being passed on to the new generations. The fourth generation of leadership here in China and the leaders in Pakistan are fully aware of the unique nature of Pakistan-China relationship and its strategic value to both countries.”

He said that through frequent high-level visits and contacts, leadership on both sides have taken a conscious decision to transmit the narrative of Pakistan-China friendship to young men and women and in fact children of Pakistan and China.

During Premier Wen Jiabao’s recent visit to Pakistan, Ambassador Khan said the two sides decided to enhance exchanges of delegations of one hundred young leaders, both men and women, as well as of high and middle class students so that they develop a deeper understanding of Pak-China relations and nurture them further.

China would also be increasing number of scholarships for graduate and post graduate science students in medicine, engineering, science and technology, especially advanced sciences such as space science and technology, Chinese language and culture. A young entrepreneurs forum would also be formed.

“We would also like to attract young Chinese students, professionals and entrepreneurs to visit Pakistan,” Khan said.
 
The dragon and the elephant's uneasy tango

However, to be fair, Wen is probably the only Chinese leader who has so far been able to imbue the Sino-Indian relationship with some degree of warmth.

Neeta Lal

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh indulged in some endearing rhetoric - calling each other 'very dear friends' etc - during the former's three-day state sojourn to New Delhi recently.
Even so, nobody was fooled into having great expectations from the much-vaunted summitry between the two Asian giants. Even though the visit transpired at a critical time, when fresh fissures have developed in bilateral relations, the dialogue failed miserably to address key strategic issues and take the relationship to the next level.
Frustratingly, most key diplomatic issues were left unresolved. For instance, earlier this year, India had suspended military exchanges with China after the latter refused a visa to a senior Indian army officer from Jammu and Kashmir. Beijing retaliated by issuing stapled visas to Kashmiris, a move that Delhi saw as a blatant violation of its sovereignty. The practice continues to date.
Other concerns - like the damming of the Brahmaputra River by the Chinese and their increased involvement in building infrastructure for ***************** Kashmir has further blighted Sino-Indian relations. In fact, Chinese investments in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir-to the tune of $12-15 billion -are considered illegal by India. Not to mention the fact that Beijing's overt flirtations with Islamabad has been disquieting for Delhi. Then there is Beijing's claim over entire Arunachal Pradesh which remains the single largest roadblock to resolving border issues.
In other words, even though Wen's visit could have helped smoothen at least a few of the bilateral creases, it didn't. On the contrary, the Premier left from Delhi straight for Islamabad, leaving South Bloc smarting under the growing Sino-Pakistani strategic nexus. And no sooner did he land there, than wires were abuzz with the photos of the beaming leader with Pak diplomats, racking up mega deals worth $ 24 billion! India, eat your heart out!
Even if India overlooked China's Pak connection, the day could have been saved had China addressed at least a few of India's core concerns. Instead, there was a paradigm shift in the dialogue process and what acquired salience was commerce. Accompanied by a delegation of over 300 leading Chinese business leaders, the largest group ever to accompany a Chinese premier to India, Wen sewed up trade deals worth 16 billion.
Overall, China signed 47 memorandums of understanding (MOU) with Indian firms ranging from telecom to power equipment setting a new bilateral trade target of $100 billion by 2015, even though India currently suffers from a trade deficit of $30 billion.
Was commerce a deliberate camouflage then, wonder policy watchers, to deflect from vital strategic issues? And just to show concrete deliverables at the trip's end, China thought mega deals would serve the purpose?
Experts rubbish this theory. According to a Ministry of External Affairs official, if the larger political environment is not conducive, there are limits to what bilateral economic exchanges can achieve. This ought to have been a clear message to both India and China to revive talks to resolve their border dispute that climaxed in the 1962 war. China claims 90,000 sq km of Indian territory in Arunachal Pradesh and occupies around 38,000 sq km in Jammu and Kashmir, which New Delhi claims as its own. There is another 5,200 sq km in ***************** Kashmir that Pakistan ceded to China in a 1963 pact.
However, rather than address this protracted issue-one of the world's oldest border disputes-Wen made it clear that he was in India on a "journey of friendship and cooperation". When India articulated its concerns over terror emanating from China's all-weather friend Pakistan, Beijing sought more time to reverse its stapled visa policy even though it could have given the issue a quiet burial, as Delhi had hoped.
Given Pakistan's continued recalcitrance towards India, terror featured prominently in the talks for the first time. Interestingly, India did manage to extract support-albeit ambiguous-from China for its bid for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council. The joint statement read, "China attaches great importance to India's status in international affairs as a large developing country, understands and supports India's aspiration to play a greater role in the United Nations, including in the Security Council."
However, to be fair, Wen is probably the only Chinese leader who has so far been able to imbue the Sino-Indian relationship with some degree of warmth. His last visit to India in 2005 produced the only negotiated document so far between the two sides to resolve the boundary dispute which has blighted Sino-Indian relations since the sixties.
That visit also helped China become India's largest trading partner as trade grew exponentially-from $2.3 billion in 2001-02 to $42.4 billion in 2009-10. Beijing and Delhi have also made friendly overtures to rally developing countries at multilateral platforms such as the World Trade Organization and the Copenhagen Climate Change Summit.
Be that as it may, Wen's recent visit did present both countries with an opportunity to evaluate the current relations and navigate the future trajectory of events. On the contrary, the summit has left India even more wary of China's motives. Wen remarked that the world has enough space for both to exist and flourish. He now needs to demonstrably follow his words by action on the ground.


Neeta Lal is a New Delhi-based senior journalist.
 

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