Chinese Premier Li Keqiang today called up his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi. (File photo)
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang today called up his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, and expressed his hope that two Asian heavyweights would work towards "establishing a robust partnership." Mr Modi, during the 25-minute-long conversation, invited the Chinese Premier, and also President Xi Jinping, to visit India later this year.
Foreign ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin tweeted about the conversation the new Indian Prime Minister had with Li. "Telephone Diplomacy! @PMOIndia has cordial telephonic talk with China's Prime Minister Li Keqiang. High level interactions discussed," he said on the microblogging site.
Mr Modi, who staged a diplomatic coup of sorts by getting Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and the leaders of other SAARC countries to attend his swearing-in ceremony on Monday, told Li that China figured high in India's foreign policy. "China always a priority in India's foreign policy (sic),'' the Ministry of External Affairs tweeted later.
Li, interestingly, became the first foreign head of a government to call up Mr Modi after he was sworn in as the country's 15th Prime Minister.
The new Indian Prime Minister thanked Li for the congratulatory message sent by him on Monday, soon after he was administered the oath of office and secrecy, and underscored his government's resolve to utilize the full potential of "our strategic and cooperative partnership with China," and expressed his keenness "to work closely with the Chinese leadership to deal with any outstanding issues in bilateral relations by proceeding from the strategic perspective of our developmental goals and long-term benefits to our peoples."
He also welcomed greater economic engagement between the two countries.
The two leaders agreed to maintain "frequent high-level interactions."
Li had on Monday issued a statement congratulating Mr Modi on being sworn as India's Prime Minister. He said he viewed India as a "natural cooperative partners" and expressed readiness to take the strategic cooperation between the two countries to "a new level."