BEIJING (Reuters) – In a show of solidarity with China’s two largest neighbours, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang assured his Russian and Indian counterparts of deepening bilateral ties, promising that “coordination and cooperation” will only strengthen.
Qin met with other foreign ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, a group of states encompassing much of Eurasia, in India on Thursday, with Beijing attempting to maintain stable relations with countries in the area while relations with the West, notably Washington, remain tight.
The US has long asked China to assist in resolving the Ukrainian conflict, despite Beijing’s refusal to call Russia’s military operations an invasion. Last week, Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke directly with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy for the first time since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine.
Qin said that China is “willing to maintain communication and coordination with Russia to make tangible contributions to the political settlement of the crisis” in Ukraine during his meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on the sidelines of the SCO summit.
According to a statement issued by the Chinese Foreign Ministry on Friday, the two sides also agreed to improve communication and coordination with other SCO member nations in order to safeguard the bloc’s “unity.”
They also agreed to increase cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region, according to the ministry, without providing more information.
Russia, India, China, Pakistan, and four Central Asian nations – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan – are now members of the bloc. According to an Indian foreign ministry official, Iran and Belarus are anticipated to be admitted to the SCO during a summit in New Delhi in July.
In a separate meeting with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Qin stated that China is willing to deepen “coordination and cooperation” on international and regional issues with India in order to return relations to a “healthy” track.
China-India relations have worsened since 2020, when their forces battled over a disputed Himalayan frontier, killing 24 people. Beijing issued a map last month depicting Arunachal Pradesh, which India claims, as part of Tibet, infuriating New Delhi.
Qin informed Jaishankar that the border situation is “generally stable.”
“We should draw on history’s experience and lessons, view bilateral relations from a strategic and long-term perspective, respect one another, learn from one another, and achieve mutual success,” Qin told Jaishankar.