Attempting to mellow the rancour created by the Ladakh incursions ahead of his Delhi visit, Chinese premier Li Keqiang gave an emotional touch to bilateral relations and indicated that a major policy change towards India was underway. Four days before he was scheduled to land in India on his first foreign visit after becoming premier, Li suggested that “linkages between our vast markets” could be a game changer for the world.
The 57-year-old Chinese leader said he had chosen India not just because it was a neighbour and one of the world’s most populous countries, but “because of the seeds of friendship sown in my own youth”. Li had led a Chinese youth delegation to India 27 years ago and the warmth and friendship of the Indian people have had a “lasting effect” on him, said Li who begins his visit to New Delhi and Mumbai on May 19.
This is the first time in a decade that a Chinese leader of his rank has given a personal and emotional touch to ties with India. Unlike past leaders, both Li and president Xi Jinping joined politics after the 1962 war and are perhaps less burdened by negative baggage.
Speaking to an Indian delegation at the picturesque Zhongnanhai, which houses the offices of Chinese ministers, he gave ample signs of major changes in China’s relationship with India. The visit comes in the backdrop of tensions over border incursions and subsequent truce as well as Pakistan polls.
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