India wants China to be more 'sensitive' on Pak issues

Noting that India and China share a complex relationship, Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao underlined that Beijing needs to be more "sensitive" towards India's concerns in its dealings with Pakistan.

During her talk at The New School here, Rao said that India was not against Pakistan's relationship with other countries but New Delhi had some genuine concerns about some aspects of the relationship between Beijing and Islamabad.

China's support for Pakistan's nuclear ambitions, Rao said, was an area where India was "seeking more clarity and transparency" and "welcomed an open discussion."

The Indian official also said New Delhi took strong exception of China's policy to issue stapled visas to residents of Jammu and Kashmir and its presence in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

The relationship between India and China, she said, "would be stronger when China shows more sensitivity on issues that impinge on our sovereignty and territorial integrity."

Both sides, Rao said, were working to resolve the boundary dispute.

The current talks, she said, were a "serious attempt to arrive at a fair and mutually acceptable statements for both side."

In response to a question, Rao noted that unlike the US, China had not yet openly endorsed India's candidacy for a permanent seat in the United Nation's Security Council.

"China is not expressing itself openly in terms of India's candidacy," she said, adding Beijing would not rpt not block India from getting a seat when the matter came to a vote.

Currently 128 out of 192 countries in the UN support India's permanent presence in the Security Council, according to Indian officials.