China willing to mediate between Pakistan, India

• Ambassador Luo reportedly says China even can ‘think about renaming’ CPEC
• ‘After 1990s, China now supports Kashmir settlement in line with Simla Agreement

China has proposed a four-point initiative to overcome differences and deepen relations that includes aligning its One Belt One Road (OBOR) project with India’s ‘Act East Policy’ and restarting negotiations on a free trade pact, the Press Trust of India news service reported.

The proposal, put forward by Chinese Ambassador Luo Zhaohui, includes starting negotiations on a China-India Treaty of Good Neighbourliness and Friendly Cooperation and prioritising early resolution of the border dispute between the two countries.

Ambassador Luo made the remarks at the United Service Institution, an Indian defence think tank, on Friday, but the text of his closed door address was released by the Chinese Embassy on Monday. Referring to Pakistan and India ties, he said that China was willing to mediate to resolve differences between the two countries if both the sides accepted it.

He said that good relations between Pakistan and India were conducive to regional stability and in China’s interests. The development of China, Pakistan, India and the stability of the region call for a stable and friendly environment, he said. “We are willing to mediate when Pakistan and India have problems. But the precondition is that both Pakistan and India accept it,” he said.

“We do this only out of goodwill. We do hope that there is no problem at all,” he also said. On the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), Ambassador Luo said that China had no intention to get involved in the ‘sovereignty and territorial disputes’ between Pakistan and India. “China supports solution of the disputes through bilateral negotiations,” he said.

He said that the CPEC was for promoting economic cooperation and connectivity and it has no connections to or impact on sovereignty issues. “Even we can think about ‘renaming’ the CPEC. China and India have had successful experience of delinking sovereignty disputes with bilateral relations before. In history, we have had close cooperation along the ancient Silk Road. Why shouldn’t we support this kind of cooperation today,” he said and questioned.

“In a word, China is sincere in its intention to cooperate with India on the OBOR, as it is good for both of us,” the ambassador said. The OBOR and the regional connectivity could provide China and India with fresh opportunities, he said, and called the project a major public product China had offered to the world. “It is a strategic initiative aimed at promoting globalisation and economic integration,” he said.

Referring to the views in India that China always puts Pakistan first when handling its relations with South Asian countries, he said that the government always followed ‘China first’ policy and that problems were dealt with based on merit. “I want to tell you this is not true. Simply put, we always put China first and we deal with problems based on their own merits,” he said.

“Take Kashmir issue for example, we supported the relevant UN resolutions before 1990s. Then we supported a settlement through bilateral negotiation in line with the Simla Agreement. This is an example of China taking care of India’s concern,” he said. On India’s bid for membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), he said: “We do not oppose any country’s membership, believing that a standard for admission should be agreed upon first.”

The ambassador’s four-point suggestion to overcome differences comes at a time when the relationship between the two Asian countries has been going through a rough patch due to differences on a range of issues, including China’s opposition to India’s bid for NSG membership. On trade ties between the two countries, Ambassador Luo said that he was happy to see that China had contributed its share to India’s development.

“Today, China is the second largest economy in the world, with a GDP of 11 trillion US dollars. We sincerely hope that India can become more developed, as it not only benefits Indian people but also creates more opportunities for China’s development. We hope to see India develop well and we are more than happy to help India develop to achieve common development,” he said.

On combating terrorism, he said that China was also a victim of terrorism. “China strongly opposes terrorism; second, China is ready to work with Pakistan, India, Afghanistan and the international community in fighting terrorism, and believes that terrorism knows no borders; third, countries need to have compatible policies, consensus and actions in fighting terrorism,” he concluded.