Chinese President Hu Jintao said in Shanghai Friday that China
is committed to developing long-term strategic cooperative
partnership with India.
"This is an established policy of the Chinese government," Hu
said when meeting with India's Minister of Petroleum and Natural
Gas Murli Deora after the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit
on Thursday.
Hu said the relationship between China and India has entered a
new phase as the two countries announced last year to forge a
strategic cooperative partnership.
This year is a Year of Friendship between China and India, and
the two countries will hold a series of activities to enhance
bilateral friendship and reciprocal cooperation, Hu said.
"I believe, with the joint efforts of our two sides, the
relations between China and India will keep upgrading," Hu
said.
Deora, who is in China for the SCO summit as a representative of
the Indian government, conveyed Indian leaders' congratulations to
China on the successful summit.
He said the relations between India and China have developed
smoothly over the years and bilateral economic and trade
cooperation is also growing rapidly.
The Indian minister said both India and China are undergoing
rapid development and India hopes to improve cooperation and
coordination with China to achieve common development.
India is an observer country of the SCO, along with Mongolia,
Pakistan and Iran. Established in June 2001, the SCO comprises
China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and
Uzbekistan.
(Xinhua News Agency June 16, 2006)
