How Chinese media views informal Xi-Modi meet

Ahead of a significant though informal interaction between President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, media in China by and large is saying that the Wuhan Summit will focus on a wide range of issues affecting and impacting both India and China, and both will need to manage their differences and focus on taking their existing cooperation to the next level.

Leading newspaper China Daily quoted excerpts from a recent article written by China's Ambassador to India Luo Zhaohui in which said, "Both countries are at a critical stage of economic development and modernisation", and acknowledging that "it is natural for neighbours to have differences (and) that when differences can't be solved, for now, we should properly manage them and focus on cooperation."

The influential hard-line daily Global Times has given the headline "Informal Modi-Xi meeting heralds a new chapter in Sino-Indian relations".

The article suggests that during the Xi-Modi meeting, "China should let India know that Beijing does not define New Delhi as an opponent nor seek to hinder its development."

It further states that "China encourages India and Pakistan to resolve (the) Kashmir conflict in a peaceful way."

The Global Times further suggests that "China should convince India that (the) China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (project) is based on promoting economic cooperation "and does not influence China's neutrality".

It further cautions India not to use Tibet as the bargaining chip.

The state-run news agency Xinhua writes that the "Tete-e-tete between the two leaders is going to set the stage for Beijing and New Delhi to further exchange views over (the) long-term and strategic issues and to initiate fresh momentum for future bilateral cooperation."

Placing emphasis on global trade issues, the Xinhua commentary says both Xi and Modi have warned on different occasions of the dire threats of trade barriers to the world economy and that "both countries should firmly stick to the spirit of free trade so as to help maintain current global free trading system with the WTO as (the Centre)."

Another popular media outlet, the Huanqiu.com quoted the Ministry of National Defence, as saying, "Despite the obstacles between two armies, we hold a belief that we need to deepen mutual understanding, increase mutual trust and resolve our disagreements under the guidance of mutual common sense of both leaders.