PM arrives in Thailand for Asean summit

Against the backdrop of the war of words between them over Arunachal Pradesh, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will hold crucial talks with his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao here tomorrow, with India saying the meeting would provide an opportunity for addressing outstanding issues like the border row.

Singh arrived at this quiet and lush town on the Gulf of Thailand to attend the India-Asean Summit tomorrow and the East Asia Summit on Sunday, along with several leaders from the Asia Pacific region.

China regards Arunachal Pradesh as a disputed territory and objected to Singh’s visit there for Assembly polls, triggering a sharp reaction from India, which asserted that the state was an integral part of the country.

“Bilateral relationship will be in focus,” Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao said on the eve of the meeting between Singh and Wen on the sidelines of the Asean summit. Rao said the relationship between the two countries was a “complex one”, though it had “developed in many areas” in recent years.

“You are aware of the outstanding issues that remain to be resolved between India and China and obviously in meetings of this nature, especially meetings between leadership at the highest level, there is an opportunity to address all these issues,” she said.