India, China To Hold First Strategic Dialogue In Beijing Today

New Delhi: As India and China battle key differences over Jaish-E Mohammed terrorist Masood Azhar and India's membership of the elite Nuclear Suppliers Group, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar on Tuesday held talks with China's top diplomat Yang Jiechi in Beijing, ahead of a key strategic dialogue on Wednesday. This is the first strategic dialogue between the two nations.

Mr Jaishankar is also expected to meet Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

China has deputed the head of the influential CPC Committee of the Chinese Foreign Ministry for the talks.

But ahead of the dialogue, China remained firm on its opposition to impose the UN ban on Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Azhar, saying China wants "solid evidence".

Last year, China put a technical hold twice on India's application to the sanctions committee of the UN Security Council and again blocked a resolution moved by the US - and backed by France and the UK - in January.

"Whether last year's application by India or this year's by relevant country our position is consistent. Our criteria is only one, we need solid evidence. If there is solid evidence the application can be approved. If there is no solid evidence there is hardly consensus," the Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson had said last week.

On India's admission into the NSG, again blocked by China, he reiterated China's stand. "We stick to a two-step approach, namely, first NSG members need to arrive at a set of principles for the entry of NSG by non-NPT state parties, and then move forward discussions of specific cases," he said.