Sonia likely to visit China in October

Congress President Sonia Gandhi is likely to visit China next month, the State media reported today.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is also likely to be in Beijing in November or December, the State-owned China Daily said a day after India's special envoy and Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon held talks with senior Chinese officials on a range of bilateral issues, including the Indo-US nuclear deal.

While no date for Singh's first visit to China has been announced, according to Menon's discussions with Chinese officials, it could be in November or December, the media reported.

'It's also likely that Sonia Gandhi, head of India's ruling Congress party, will visit China next month,' the paper said.

Sonia last visited China in 1996; her planned trip to the country in 2003 was cancelled.

The ruling Communist Party of China is apparently quite keen to host Gandhi, who had visited China in 1988 along with her late husband Rajiv when he was prime minister, which was a ground-breaking event in Sino-Indian relations.

However, a brief press release, issued by the Indian embassy at the end of Menon's visit, did not mention Singh's or Gandhi's planned visit, or the nuclear issue.

It merely said Menon visited China for discussions with the Chinese government on issues of mutual interest to New Delhi and Beijing as part of the effort to consolidate the strategic and cooperative partnership.

'The discussions covered further steps to improve and consolidate their bilateral relations, regional and international issues. The discussions were positive, constructive and fruitful,' the embassy said.

Meanwhile, on the nuclear issue, the China Daily report noted that 'since China recently said it is willing to discuss the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal at the Nuclear Suppliers Group, it is widely believed that the topic will be high on Menon's agenda.'

'No details, however, were available on what the two sides are likely to discuss,' it said vaguely.

At the same time, it noted that Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Jiang Yu had said that China has always believed that all countries have the right to cooperate on the peaceful use of nuclear energy, provided they abide by international obligations.

"We will participate in the discussions on relevant issues under this principle," Jiang said, referring to the Indian-US nuclear cooperation pact.

Calling Menon an "old friend", Chinese State Councillor Tang Jiaxuan reflected on their joint work earlier that resulted in two agreements on the Sino-Indian border issue.

Tang said he believed that Menon, a former ambassador to China, will continue to push forward the strategic partnership in his current capacity.

During Singh's proposed visit, India is expected to formally inaugurate a new consulate in Guangzhou, capital of South China's Guangdong province. The office will look after India's interest in China's southern and southeastern provinces, the report said.