Beijing: China said on Wednesday that it has despatched vice foreign minister Kong Xuanyou to Islamabad to discuss the Indo-Pak tensions following the Pulwama terrorist attack.
“He (Kong) is now visiting Pakistan. He is in communication with Pakistan on the India-Pakistan situation,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang told a media briefing here.
Tensions escalated between India and Pakistan in the wake of the Pulwama terror attack in Kashmir which killed 40 CRPF personnel and was claimed by Pakistan-based terror group Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM).
After the suicide attack, India carried out airstrikes on a training camp of JeM in Balakot in Pakistan on February 26. In the operation, India claimed that a very large number of JeM terrorists, trainers, senior commanders and groups of jihadis who were being trained for suicide attacks were killed.
Also read: Four Reasons India Has Little Cause to Cheer the Balakot Airstrike and its Aftermath
The next day, the Pakistan Air Force retaliated and downed a MiG-21 in an aerial confrontation and captured Indian pilot Abhinandan Varthaman, who was handed over to India last Friday.
“His visit is designed for communication with Pakistan for the situation concerning both India and Pakistan. China has been promoting peace and stability in this region. We hope that Pakistan and India will maintain friendly relations,” Lu said.
Hours after India’s Balakot airstrike, China, which has good diplomatic ties with Islamabad, urged India and Pakistan to “exercise restraint” and asked New Delhi to carry out its fight against terrorism through international cooperation.
“We have taken note of the relevant reports. I want to say that India and Pakistan are both important countries in South Asia. A sound relationship and cooperation between the two serves the interests of both the countries and peace and stability in South Asia,” Lu had said.
On Wednesday, he said Pakistan has been making efforts to combat terrorism.
“In fact, Pakistan has been making efforts and exercised policies to combat terrorism. We think we should encourage this. We also hope relevant parties will create an enabling atmosphere to help Pakistan to cooperate with other parties to form synergy,” Lu said.
To a question on whether Kong would visit India too, Lu said “China is in contact with India and Pakistan concerning the current circumstances”.
Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Muhammad Qureshi earlier said that China would send a special envoy to Pakistan and India to defuse the tensions.
When asked whether Kong would also discuss the recent resolution at the Russia, India, China (RIC) Foreign Ministers’ meeting at the Chinese city of Wenzhou where the three countries agreed for policy coordination to eradicate breeding grounds of terrorism, Lu said that the resolution of root causes of terrorism is also important.
“As to counter terrorism issue in the trilateral meeting, I shall say a key point is that terrorism is a complex issue. We should address the symptom and the root causes of terrorism that is the premise for what was proposed by foreign Ministers of the three countries,” he said.
About the latest resolution submitted by France, the UK and the US in the UN Security Council to list JeM chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist, Lu said China would take a conducive decision to resolve the differences.
China so far stonewalled India’s efforts to declare Azhar as a global terrorist by the UNSC.
Also read: Reading Between the Lines, from Pulwama to the Balakot Airstrike
To a question whether China would support the resolution or abstain, Lu said, “like we said on many occasions the UNSC and affiliated bodies, it is a very serious issue for them to list the terrorists. China will have discussions with relevant bodies.”
Asked whether China’s stand would be different this time as JeM has admitted its role in the Pulwama attack, Lu said that the UNSC and its affiliated bodies have detailed criteria and standards for their work.
“China is engaged in consultations strictly in line with the standards. It requires high responsibility for us to work in these multilateral organisations and I can assure you that what China does will be conducive to resolution of such issue with high responsibility,” he said.
Lu also welcomed Pakistan’s plans to open a corridor for the visa-free visit of Indian Sikh pilgrims to Guru Nanak shrine in Kartarpur.
Pakistan on Tuesday said it will send a delegation to India on March 14 to discuss a draft agreement for setting up the corridor to facilitate visa-free visit of Sikh pilgrims to Kartarpur.
“We also noted this progress. We believe this is conducive to easing the situation. This is a positive progress,” Lu said while replying to a question.
“Pakistan and India are neighbours that can’t be moved away. The good neighbourliness and friendliness between the two countries are in line with their fundamental interests as well as the peace stability of the region,” he added.