China’s top diplomat in Bangladesh Li Jiming said he is a big fan of India, personally, and he thinks India and China can work together closely to solve economic and geopolitical issues. China does not have any strategic rivalry with India and does not want to see a ‘heavily armed’ Bay of Bengal, the envoy said in Dhaka.
The comments came as external affairs minister S Jaishankar made a strong comment on the India-China relationship to China’s outgoing ambassador to India Sun Weidong when the latter made a farewell call on Jaishankar at South Block.
In his farewell remarks, Sun Weidong said it is only natural for India and China to have differences and they should seek common ground and not allow their relationship to be defined by disagreements. There is enough room in the world for China and India to develop together, Sun said.”…the two sides should strive to manage and resolve differences, and look for a proper solution through dialogue and consultation, instead of defining China-India relations by differences. The two countries need to respect each other’s political systems and development paths, and uphold the principle of non-interference in each other’s internal affairs,” he said.
Jaishankar said the normalization of India-China relations is in the interest of both countries and the region.
Amid this strong exchange, Chinese envoy in Bangladesh Li Jiming said China does not see India as a strategic rival or competition. “We never view India as a strategic rival or strategic competitor of China,” ambassador Li said during an interaction. “Personally, I’m a big fan of India. We can work together more closely to solve economic and geopolitical issues,” he said.
