EAM Jaishankar holds talks with Chinese Vice President Han Zheng

Beijing | External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday conveyed to Chinese Vice President Han Zheng that continued normalisation of India-China ties can produce mutually beneficial outcomes

In a meeting with Han, Jaishankar also said that an open exchange of views between the two neighbouring countries was important, considering the "complex" global situation.

The external affairs minister landed in Beijing this morning from Singapore in the second and final leg of his two-nation trip.

Jaishankar is visiting China to attend a conclave of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in the Chinese city of Tianjin.

It is Jaishankar's first visit to China after the ties between the two countries came under severe strain following the 2020 military standoff along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.

"Our bilateral relationship, as you have pointed, has been steadily improving since the meeting between Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi and President Xi Jinping in Kazan last October," Jaishankar said in his televised opening remarks in the meeting.

"I am confident that my discussions in this visit will maintain that positive trajectory," he said.

The external affairs minister also referred to the 75th anniversary of the establishment of India-China diplomatic relations.

"The resumption of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra is also widely appreciated in India. Continued normalisation of our ties can produce mutually beneficial outcomes," he said.

The international situation, as we meet today, is very complex. As neighbouring nations and major economies, an open exchange of views and perspectives between India and China is very important," Jaishankar added.

"I look forward to such discussions during this visit." Jaishankar's visit is taking place less than three weeks after Defence Minister Rajnath Singh travelled to the Chinese port city of Qingdao to participate in the SCO defence ministers' conference.

China is the current chair of the SCO, and it is hosting the meetings of the grouping in that capacity.