New Delhi, India and China on Friday have identified 10 sectors to boost people to people relations, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said while her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi maintained that Sino-India relations have “entered new historical stage”.
Addressing the media after co chairing the India-China High Level Mechanism on Cultural and People-to-People Exchanges with her Chinese counterpart, Ms Swaraj said ten areas identified for enhanced people-to-people relations will be cultural exchanges, cooperation in film and television, ties in maintaining museums, sports, youth exchanges, tourism, state and city level cooperation, ties in traditional medicines, and cooperation in industry and telecom.
She credited both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping for putting the Mechanism for people to people relations on the right track.
She mentioned about the maiden Informal Summit both Mr Modi and Xi Jinping had in April this year.”Both the leaders did not leave the mechanism for people to people level relations with officials but assigned the two foreign ministers to steer it,” Ms Swaraj said adding this also reflects the “farsightedness” of both the leaders.
“Today’s meeting has a major significance as it is the first meeting since the Informal Summit between PM Modi and President Xi Jinping,” the External Affairs Minister said.
During the two-hour long meeting, both the ministers discussed bilateral cooperation and also how the defence ties too could be enhanced.
Chinese Foreign Minister told reporters that his interactions with Ms Swaraj were “very successful” and pointed out that – “the new mechanism for cultural, people to people exchanges is a major initiative in history of India-China ties.”
Mr Wang Yi said the relations between two countries have entered ‘new historical stage’.He said media has an important role in pushing India and China towards a better relationship especially at the mass level.”Media needs to project real India, real China and the ever growing India China relationship,” the visiting minister said.
Ms Swaraj said in fact PM Modi and Chinese President has met three times this year and both the leaders have emphsised that people to people relations need further enhancement more so because both the countries are also neighbours.
“The two countries represent about one third of global population. Therefore, the close ties will not only have impact at regional level…This will have impact in international level also,” she said.
The Chinese Foreign Minister said while his country is striving for the realisation of its two centenary goals, and India is devoted to building a “New India”.
In this context, he said ‘Indian achievements’ ought to be appreciated.He said his government is willing to work with India fully coordinate under the people-to-people exchanges mechanism and utilize all kinds of resources to ensure there are “respective advantages” for both.
Mr Wang said the formal launch of the mechanism is an important step taken by the two countries to implement the consensus reached by PM Modi and President Xi Jinping.
This, he said will be an important step to boost the development of all-round bilateral ties between the two countries and an important platform to realise revival of the ‘oriental civilisations’.
The mechanism will help in consolidating the public opinion and also push forward the peaceful coexistence among different civilisations and jointly maintaining the world peace and stability, Mr Wang said.