China, India to hold strategic dialogue in Beijing

BEIJING - China and India will hold a new round of strategic dialogue in Beijing next week, a foreign ministry spokesperson said Friday at a daily press briefing.

Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Yesui and Indian Foreign Secretary Subramanyam Jaishankar will co-chair the dialogue next Wednesday, spokesperson Geng Shuang said.

The two sides will exchange views on bilateral relations as well as regional and international issues of common concerns.

"The dialogue is an important communication mechanism between China and India, and we expect to strengthen political mutual trust, expand strategic common understandings and further promote bilateral ties through this dialogue," Geng said.

Issues including India's bid to join the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) and its application to list Massod Azhar, the head of the militant group Jaish-e-Mohammed, as a designated terrorist under the 1267 Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council will be discussed, according to media reports with sources from the Indian side.

The two issues mentioned above are essentially multilateral ones rather than bilateral, Geng said, while stressing that China's stance is based on the rights and wrongs of the case itself.

"Despite some differences between China and India, the two sides can carry on in-depth communication, including the forthcoming dialogue, to narrow differences and expand cooperation," he said.