Asian giants India and China on Monday opened a first round of "strategic dialogue", officials said, as their regional and international influence surges despite a nagging border dispute. The two-day talks were being held between delegations led by Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Wu Dawei and Indian foreign secretary Shyam Saran, a fluent Mandarin speaker, officials said.
"The first meeting of the India-China strategic dialogue was held with detailed discussions on regional and global issues that shape the present international environment. There was a broad convergence of views," said Indian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Navtej Sarna.
"Both sides briefed each other on their respective foreign and security policies," he added.
The dialogue, which the officials said had no "fixed agenda", aims to broaden the scope of the Sino-Indian relationship allowing both sides to exchange notes on global and regional security issues.
"The next round of talks will be held in China on mutually agreed dates," said Sarna, adding that both sides were "satisfied with the outcome of the discussions" and felt they had "increased mutual trust."
The talks also prepared the ground for a visit to India by Chinese premier Wen Jiabao set for March.
"The two sides agreed to work together to ensure a substantive outcome of the visit, which is expected to mark a new phase in the relationship between the two countries." The neighbours already have in place a joint working group on a long-standing boundary dispute, which is to come up for review.
"It is possible that the boundary issue may have come up for discussions but there is a separate bilateral mechanism to deal with that," said Sarna, declining to comment on any progress made during Monday's strategic dialogue on the boundary dispute.
India and China fought a brief border war in 1962 that left their relations in shreds. But in recent years they have played down their territorial dispute to focus on improving commercial and other ties.
Both sides are engaged in discussions to resolve the lingering boundary dispute - a fallout of the 1962 war - with special representatives holding several rounds of talks since June 2003.
Ties have warmed since a visit to Beijing by then-premier Atal Behari Vajpayee in June 2003 who is credited with improving Sino-India relations by getting China to officially recognise the tiny state of Sikkim as part of India in return for New Delhi acknowledging Tibet as a part of China.
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