On the eve of NSG's plenary in Seoul, China said on Wednesday that India's entry into the bloc was not on the agenda as New Delhi was not a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
"The meeting is only to deliberate on the entry application of countries that are state parties to the NPT," the foreign ministry said. "As for the entry of non-NPT countries, the group has never put that on its agenda.
"The NSG (Nuclear Suppliers Group) has never put the entry application of non-NPT countries on its agenda. So it makes no sense to say that discussions are blocked," a ministry statement added.
China opposes Indian's entry into the 48-nation NSG saying it is not a signatory to the NPT.
The NSG, which regular global nuclear commerce, works on the principle of consensus and lets in a new member only if all existing members agree.
The Chinese statement came as Indian Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar flew to Seoul. He had earlier made a quiet visit to Beijing, apparently to seek support for New Delhi's membership.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping at Tashkent during a two-day summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).
(Gaurav Sharma is IANS correspondent in Beijing. He can be contacted at sharmagaurav71@gmail.com and gaurav.s@ians.in)
--IANS
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