We would like to see healthy bilateral Indo-China ties: US

Washington: The US would like to see a “healthy relationship” between India and China which are very strong and growing economies with significant influence, a top official has said amid China’s opposition to India’s NSG bid. “We would like to see healthy bilateral relations between India and China. We would like to see them work out whatever differences they have,” State Department Spokesman John Kirby told reporters at his daily news conference on Thursday. “We have differences with China and we have a strong vehicles for dialogue to try to work through them. It does not mean we get to complete agreement on everything, but we have vehicles and avenues to have a healthy discussion. We would welcome that between India and China,” Kirby said as he was responding to questions on China’s opposition to India’s NSG membership. He said both India and China are “very strong, very growing economies” each with a large population and a significant influence not just regionally but globally. [caption id=“attachment_2853200” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image[/caption] “So we believe it is in everyone’s interest to have India and China have good, healthy bilateral – a good bilateral relationship. But where it is going to go, I mean, I could not possibly predict that,” Kirby said. The US has made very clear how seriously it wants India’s application to be taken up inside the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), he said. “The Chinese can speak for themselves in terms of their views on that. But if you are asking me a broader question about would we favour healthy bilateral relations between India and China, of course we would. We would not stand in the way of that at all. But to the degree there’s tensions there over this or any other matter, it is really for those two nations to speak to,” Kirby added. China has sought to de-link its opposition to India’s membership of NSG from Sino-Indian ties saying that it does not concern the bilateral relationship. China “belligerently” led opposition to India’s membership of NSG at a three-hour post-dinner meeting of the Nuclear Suppliers Group on Thursday night which ended in a deadlock. Preceding the two-day plenary of the 48-member NSG, which began on Thursday, China had repeatedly said that India’s membership was not on the agenda and is said to have made every effort to prevent any discussion on India’s bid.