Phnom Penh: China's new leadership will accord great importance to relations with India, outgoing Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao told his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh during a meeting on Monday. Wen said he cherished working with Singh over the last eight years during which they met 14 times.
The new Chinese leadership will give "great importance" to relations with India, Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai quoted Wen as saying. "We established good working relationship and friendship between us. This is reflection of friendship between our two great nations," Wen told Singh on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit in the Cambodian capital.
Singh and Wen have met 14 times earlier and the Chinese Premier said Monday's meeting could be the last as he would be demitting office in March. "This is possibly the last meeting between us in my remaining tenure," 70-year-old Chinese leader said, while referring to the change of leadership in China last week under which he will demit office in March. Wen is expected to be replaced by Li Keqiang as Premier.
Singh hailed Wen's personal endeavour to make the bilateral relationship "stronger, wider and deeper". He specifically referred to Wen's two visits to India in 2005 and 2010, saying these helped make the ties "stronger". "I personally value working with you," Singh told Wen.
Singh offered congratulations on the successful conclusion of the 18th National Congress of the ruling Communist Party of China, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. At the conclusion of the Congress, the CPC elected Xi Jinping as its new General Secretary. Xi will replace Hu Jintao as the communist nation's President in March.
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