Second China-India Forum

The Second China-India Forum sponsored by the CPAFFC and the China-India Friendship Association (CIFA) was held in Beijing May 15-16. CIFA President Jiang Zheng- hua, CIFA Advisor Wang Maolin, CPAFFC Vice President Feng Zuoku, and Indian Ambassador to China S. Jaishankar attended the opening ceremony. Over 200 officials, scholars, businessmen from the political, economic, cultural and environmental sectors of China, India and some other countries as well as reporters were present at the forum.

The 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and India was recognized in the content of keynote speeches and scholars’ comments. The meeting established political and cultural, economic and social, and environmental sub-forums.

Consensus was reached at the forum on the following points:

1. Rapid development of China-India relations is of global significance. Jiang Zhenghua said that, since entering the 21st century, with the rapid development of bilateral relations, issues of common concern have increased and China-India relations have entered a new stage of close cooperation and all-round development. Bilateral communications and coordination are being further strengthened and steady progress is being made in realizing strategic goals. Areas of bilateral cooperation are expanding and exchanges between the two peoples increasing. The importance of the relations between China and India has gone beyond the purely bilateral level. Mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries is of great importance to the peace and stability of the whole Asia, and, indeed, even the world. Former Chinese Ambassador to India Cheng Ruisheng pointed out that, if peace cannot be maintained between China and India, it will harm the development of the two countries, and even the stability of the region. Professor Jonathan Burton-MacLeod at the Indian O. P. Jindal Global University put forward the view that India and China are faced with a new opportunity for dialogue in the context of changes of the strategic triangular area. He stressed the two countries should grasp the opportunity to conduct closer cooperation for mutual benefit; at the same time, they should also carry out multilateral cooperation.

2. Cultural exchanges between China and India should be elevated to a higher level and touch the hearts of the people. Mao Xiaoyu of the China Art Academy said, cultural exchanges should not be limited to ceremonies and activities; it should touch the hearts of the people. China-India cultural exchanges should not be confined to such contents as Buddhism, songs, dances, music, painting, photography, etc.; it should be expanded in breadth and depth such as introducing to each other works that can reflect the philosophical, social and cultural heights of the two great civilizations.

3. The two countries should carry out cooperation in environmental protection. Environmental issues are of common concern. At the forum, consideration was given on how the two countries should innovate public policies to tackle global environmental changes and protect water resources. Suresh Prabhu, India’former Minister for Environment and Forests, said, India and China are both developing countries joined by common mountains and rivers. As both countries face the common issue of ensuring environmental protection, they can cooperate in many fields such as protection of water resources, fauna and flora. Prof. Dong Shikuei of Beijing Normal University, who has been engaged for many years in the research on cross-border protection of animals and plants in the Himalayan Area, spoke about the impact of climate change and suggested that the two countries conduct regional cooperation on the basis of equality and sustainability such as sharing information, carrying out technological exchanges, protecting cross-border water resources, fauna and flora and helping the local people better tackle climate change.

4. The two countries should strengthen dialogue between their media and establish an interaction mechanism. Relations between the media of the two countries became another issue that attracted much attention. Yuan Yue with the Horizon Research Consultancy Group of China said, the two countries should particularly strengthen dialogue between their media, for many crises in the relations between the two countries were triggered by them. Ma Jiali of the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations hoped that the media would play a more constructive role, do more work to promote relations and less to impede them. Only by doing so could they create a good atmosphere for steady progress of China-India relations. Peng Jing of Sichuan University suggested that the two countries should establish a media interaction mechanism, increase cultural exchanges and cooperation between the two peoples, expand people-to-people contacts and strengthen the efforts to establish a popular basis for China-India strategic partnership.

A total of 38 Chinese and foreign experts from the political, cultural, economic and trade sectors spoke at the forum, among whom many were famous experts including Professor Li Dun of the Center for the Study of Contemporary China of Tsinghua University; Mei Xinyu, research fellow at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation; Huang Yasheng, professor of Sloan School of Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Suresh Prabhu, former Indian Minister for Environment and Forests, and Professor B. S. Butola of Jawaharlal Nehru University. Experts from Canada, Australia and Cuba were also invited to attend. They looked at Sino-Indian relations from the perspective of third countries, which helped expand the vision of the forum and lift its international popularity.

In addition, there were many new subjects for discussion at the forum. Besides traditional subjects such as China-India bilateral relations and comparison between the political, economic and cultural systems of the two countries, many new subjects such as those on transportation, environmental protection, regional cooperation, and development of software industry, rural areas and agriculture as well as comparison between values were added for discussion at the forum. It reflected that both Chinese and Indian nongovernmental sectors have more concerns for each other and want to look at the development of China-India relations from various angles and explore new ways and directions for bilateral cooperation.