China agrees to trade through Sikkim; India recognises Tibet
By Our Economic Bureau | 24 Jun 2003
Beijing: China has agreed to trade through the Northeastern state of Sikkim, and India has decided to recognise the Tibetan autonomous region as part of the territory of the People''s Republic of China.
The agreement on opening of trading posts on the Sikkim-Tibet border, in effect recognising Sikkim as part of India after 28 years of its merger, is contained in a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on expanded border trade signed at the end of Indian Prime Minister A B Vajpayee''s discussions with his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao here.
Besides the MoU on border trade, India and China signed the first-ever joint declaration, which lays down the "goals and guiding principles" for future relationship between the two Asian giants.
China has, however, said that Sikkim is "an enduring issue left over from history" and cannot be resolved overnight. "We have to respect history. We have to take into consideration realistic factors," says Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Kong Quan.