NEW DELHI – The head of China’s nominal lower house of parliament, Jia Qinglin, met Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee (news – web sites) for talks on a host of bilateral issues, an official said.
Qinglin arrived in New Delhi Sunday on a five-day visit to India.
During the 30-minute meeting, the two leaders discussed bilateral relations, particularly “positive developments” since Vajpayee’s visit to China in June, an external affairs ministry spokesman said on Monday.
Jia, chairman of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, told reporters his talks here were “aimed at enhancing mutual trust and understanding” with India.
“I hope this visit will cement our relations,” he said.
India and China fought a war in 1962 over their unmarked border between Tibet and the northeastern Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh.
Since Vajpayee’s June visit, the first by an Indian prime minister to Beijing in a decade, they have been working to mend often uneasy ties and have stepped up efforts to finally demarcate the border.
Jia is due to visit the cities of Agra and Hyderabad before leaving Thursday.
