PM Modi to visit Japan, China to boost strategic ties from August 29

New Delhi [India], August 22 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Japan and China from August 29 to September 1, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

At the invitation of the Prime Minister of Japan, Shigeru Ishiba, PM Modi will travel to Japan from August 29-30 to participate in the 15th India-Japan Annual Summit. This will be Prime Minister Modi’s eighth visit to Japan and his first summit with Ishiba, the MEA added. 

During the visit, the two leaders will review the Special Strategic and Global Partnership between India and Japan, covering defence and security, trade and economy, technology and innovation, and people-to-people exchanges. They will also discuss issues of regional and global importance. The visit is expected to reaffirm the longstanding bond of friendship between the two countries, the MEA said. 

In the second leg of his visit, at the invitation of China’s President Xi Jinping, PM Modi will travel to China from August 31 to September 1 to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin. On the sidelines of the Summit, the Prime Minister is expected to hold bilateral meetings with several leaders attending the Summit.

India has been a member of the SCO since 2017 and held the presidency of the Council of Heads of State of the organisation during 2022-23, the MEA noted. 

In a continuation of ongoing engagement, earlier this week, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and handed over a message and an invitation from President Xi Jinping for the SCO Summit in Tianjin, China. 

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi paid an official visit to India from August 18 to 19.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi received Wang Yi, a Member of the Politburo of the Communist Party and the Foreign Minister of China.

"Mr. Wang Yi handed over a message and an invitation from President Xi to the Prime Minister for the SCO Summit being held in Tianjin. He also shared his positive assessment of the bilateral meeting with EAM Dr. S. Jaishankar and the 24th Meeting of the Special Representatives, which he co-chaired with NSA Ajit Doval during his visit," Prime Minister's Office stated in a release. 

Prime Minister emphasised the importance of maintaining peace and tranquillity on the border, and reiterated India's commitment to a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable resolution of the boundary question. 

Prime Minister thanked President Xi for the invitation to the SCO Summit and conveyed his acceptance.

He expressed support for China's Presidency of the SCO Summit and said that he looked forward to meeting President Xi in Tianjin. PM underlined that stable, predictable, and constructive ties between India and China will contribute significantly to regional and global peace and prosperity, an official statement issued by PMO read. (ANI)