India, China should come together as partners rather than rivals: Chinese envoy

India and China should come together as partners rather than rivals, Chinese Ambassador Sun Weidong said on Sunday.

He made these remarks on the sidelines of a seminar in Bengaluru titled 'Interference of the US imperialist in the internal affairs of the People's Republic of China'. It was organised by the India-China Friendship Association (ICFA), Karnataka.

"I have come here for friendship and we have many friends here and all over India, actually, although we are facing some difficulties in the past two years. This relationship has witnessed some momentum of recovery due to the joint efforts of both sides. This year, President Xi Jinping has a congratulatory letter to President Murmu," the Chinese Ambassador told ANI.

"Also the leaders of both countries participated in the BRICS summit hosted by China. Our State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi paid a visit to India in March earlier this year and he also met the External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar in Indonesia," he added.

India's engagement with China has remained complex since the April-May 2020 border clash.

The two sides have agreed to manage their differences and not allow differences on any issue to become disputes. Earlier, the Chinese side undertook several attempts to unilaterally alter the status quo along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Western Sector, which seriously disturbed the peace and tranquility along the LAC.

These attempts were invariably met with an appropriate response from Indian Armed Forces. However, the continued unilateral attempts by China to change the status quo have impacted the bilateral relationship since then.

The Chinese envoy insisted that both countries can find common ground on bilateral ties.

"We find common grounds and census on the China-India relationship because we all believe the China-India relationship is very important both for our two countries, our people and for the region and the world. We should come together and see each other as partners rather than rivals," he said.

Last week, the leader of the Opposition in Karnataka Siddaramaiah refused to participate in an event organised by the Chinese embassy citing ideological differences.

"Although I refused to participate in the program organized by India-China Friendship Association on Sunday, I was surprised to see my name in the invitation letter," Siddaramaiah tweeted.

He also outlined the reason: "I am not participating in the program as ideologically my stand and that of our party is against the purpose of the program."

(ANI)

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