India our important neighbour, willing to hold talks over CPEC issues: China
Beijing, January 30: China on Monday says that India is an important neighbour and it is ready to hold talk to resolve issues over the 50 billion US Dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
“They shall not be allowed to influence the long-term development of bilateral relations. That would be the best way to serve the interests of the two sides.”
Asked about Indian Ambassador to China Gautam Bambawale's interview to state-run Global Times, Hua Chunying said “CPEC is a project for economic cooperation, pure and simple. It involves no territorial disputes and targets no third parties. China hopes that the Indian side could view this issue in an objective manner.”
“China and India should regard each other as opportunities for development rather than as threats to each other. We certainly wish to see India as our partner and would like to work with India to strengthen exchanges and cooperation at all levels and in various fields so as to further enhance the friendship and mutual trust,” Hua Chunying said.
It comes days after India's envoy in Beijing said the issue should not be swept under the carpet. New Delhi has objected to the CPEC which is the biggest project of the Belt and Road Initiative as it traverses through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and has become a contentious issue in India-China relations.
Interestingly, China has also emerged as the single largest lender of money to Pakistan ever since the two countries decided to undertake the CPEC project a little more than two years back.
The CPEC project comprises a network of railways, roads and pipelines that would connect Pakistan’s port city of Gwadar in the province of Balochistan, with the Chinese city of Kashgar in landlocked Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR).