The Hindu : China, Japan welcome India-Pakistan accord

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Feb 20, 2004

International

International - India & World

China, Japan welcome India-Pakistan accord

By P. S. Suryanarayana

SINGAPORE, FEB. 19. China and Japan today hailed the latest India-Pakistan accord on bilateral talks in a conspicuously upbeat fashion. The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Zhang Qiyue, said that India and Pakistan had now taken "a solid step towards peaceful relations."

She said at a regular press conference in Beijing today that "China supports this [development] and believes that they [India and Pakistan] should exert [themselves] for further efforts in this direction."

Affirming that "China is very pleased to see the positive results'' of the latest diplomatic engagement between India and Pakistan, Ms. Zhang noted that they "defined the agenda'' and ``arrangements'' for further discussions.

Their joint statement was also seen as marking a "consensus on peaceful solutions to their disputes."

Japan, which too monitors the India-Pakistan scene very closely, noted that "both parties agreed to discuss and arrive at a peaceful settlement of all bilateral issues, including Jammu and Kashmir."

The Japanese Foreign Ministry said it ``welcomes'' the new schedule of meetings between India and Pakistan as "significant progress in relations between the two countries and stability of the region."

In a statement in Tokyo, the Ministry said: "Japan holds in high regard the efforts taken by both countries since last year towards improving their relations." Tokyo expressed the "hope that further progress will be achieved through the coming talks'' as now agreed upon by India and Pakistan.

China today welcomed the ``positive'' contribution that the Sino-Indian Eminent Persons' Group [EPG] made towards the ``strengthening'' of bilateral relations at their latest meeting in Beijing. The two-day session of the non-official group, the fourth in a series, concluded earlier in the day.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Zhang Qiyue, told reporters in Beijing that both sides in the EPG "gave a highly positive assessment [of] the favourable development of Sino-Indian relations'' at this stage.

Noting that the members of the EPG exchanged views on "strengthening cooperation'' in the fields of political and economic cooperation as also science and technology and culture, she said the meeting was of ``positive'' significance for "mutual understanding and friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation between China and India."

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