Indian Ambassador: India Year to Launch on April 7

By staff reporter LIU YI

Indian Ambassador in an exclusive interview with China Today.

The India Year in China is planned to launch on April 7, 2010, and a number of activities will be organized in Beijing, Shanghai and 25 to 30 other Chinese cities, announced Mr. S. Jaishankar, recently appointed Indian Ambassador to China, in an exclusive interview with China Today on February 24.

The year 2010 marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and India. Major cultural events entitled “India Year in China” and “China Year in India” will be held respectively in the two countries. “We would like to present as many faces of India as possible,” Ambassador Jaishankear introduces the India’s Year will include many culture performances, like dancing dramas, exhibitions and business meetings will be held as well.

In the coming Shanghai Expo, India will demonstrate a big bamboo structure with the theme of “Cities of Harmony”. Being a diverse nation, India is a land of many languages, religions, cultures. According to the ambassador, diversity and pluralism is what India is about, and it will present the main characteristic of India, which is “different and diverse people living in harmony” in the Expo.

India is the first non-socialist country to establish diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China. “It’s important to remind people of the history,” says the ambassador, “because many younger Indians and Chinese don’t remember there was time the two countries were close and stood together on many international issues. Good memories and traditions are sometimes forgotten.”

China is now India’s largest trading partner, and the bilateral trade reached US$52 billion in 2008. The ambassador recalled that for the last 15 years, each year have witnessed better relations between the two than the previous year.

At the political level, the ambassador says it’s natural between neighbors, particularly large neighboring countries to have differences. But “the important point is not that we have issues, but is how we are dealing with issues.” He believes our two countries have a lot of common interests like the climate change issue, both countries are BRICs, and Chinese and Indian prime ministers meet regularly at the East Asia Summit.

Dr. S. Jaishankar took on the post as ambassador to China last August. He says China and India share many similarities. In both countries, people are struggling to improve their living standard. In the last 20 years, the influence of China has grown and the living quality of its people improved a lot. “Your quick growth is an inspiration for us. If you can do it, we can do it,” says the ambassador.

Meanwhile, the two countries are not identical in many ways like their political, economic and social systems. “But that we are different doesn’t mean we should against each other.”