Xi eyes continued correct direction for China-India ties

President Xi Jinping meets India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, February 2, 2015. [Photo/Xinhua]

BEIJING - President Xi Jinping on Monday called for a continued advancement of ties between China and India.

"Leaders of the two countries should maintain communication and exchanges and work together to ensure the correct direction for the development of the bilateral ties," Xi said as he met with India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

Xi attributed the stable development of the relationship mainly to the accumulating political trust and consensus on some major issues reached between the leaders of the two countries.

Recalling his visit to India in September, Xi said his visit initiated a new phase of relationship and that the trend of friendly exchanges and cooperation between the two countries is "very good".

Xi asked Swaraj to convey his greetings to Indian President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said he "welcome Prime Minister Modi to visit China at an early date."

China and India should grasp the "opportunity of the century" to combine their development strategies, and push ahead with their strategic cooperation on railways and industrial parks to benefit the 2.5 billion people of the two countries as well as the global economic development, said the Chinese president.

Xi said the two sides should patiently control and manage disputes to prevent them from affecting the overall relationship. He called for sincerity and willingness to pursue a gradual and appropriate resolution of disputes.

China stands ready to increase communication and coordination with India on global governance and other major international and regional issues to ensure the international order develops in a more fair and rational direction and to safeguard the interests of emerging markets and developing countries, Xi said.

For her part, Swaraj conveyed the greetings of President Mukherjee and Prime Minister Modi to Xi, adding that Xi's visit last year elevated the India-China relationship to a new level.

She said the consensus reached between the leaders were being implemented and India looks forward to more investment from China and more balanced trade between the two countries.

The Indian side hopes for more dialogue on border issues, she added.

Swaraj said Prime Minister Modi looked forward to visiting China and she believed this visit would bring important progress for the relationship.