NEW DELHI : Within days of American President Barack Obama’s visit to India which caused discomfort in Beijing, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will travel to China from February 1-3.
The visit, at the invitation of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, will provide Ms Swaraj an opportunity to discuss with the Chinese leadership bilateral contentious issues as well as various other regional and global developments, an official statement said today.
Ms Swaraj will inaugurate the 2nd India-China High-Level Media Forum and attend the launch of ‘Visit India Year’ during her stay in Beijing.
She will also participate in the 13th Foreign Ministers’ Meeting of Russia-India-China Trilateral, and will meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on the sidelines of the meeting. Her visit to China comes immediately after US President Barack Obama’s visit to India, during which India and America signed a joint strategic vision for Asia Pacific region. China had sharply reacted to the arrangement, describing it as ‘superficial rapprochement.’
China appears upset over the Indo-US joint statement issued after the talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Obama since it also refers to the Asia-Pacific and the Indian Ocean region where maritime disputes between China and other claimant nations are escalating. Ms Swaraj visit is first high-level engagement with Beijing after three-day visit in September by Chinese President Xi Jinping during which Chinese troops confronted Indian troops in the Ladakh region of Kashmir, infuriating Indian establishment. (AGENCIES)
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