China, India set for fresh border talks
(Reuters)
Updated: 2005-09-25 18:13

Asian giants India and China are entering the toughest leg of their attempts to settle a decades-old border dispute as envoys of the two countries hold talks this week to draw up a plan to mark their frontier, the Reuters reported.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh held talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York earlier this month.

The pair agreed to pursue a reasonable solution to the dispute with a greater urgency.

"The two sides feel that they have an opportunity to pursue a pragmatic solution based on the political parameters agreed between them," an Indian Foreign Ministry official said.

"The talks in Beijing between special representatives of the two sides will take this process forward."

Indian National Security Adviser MK Narayanan and Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Dai Bingguo will meet for two days, according to an Reuter report.

Relations between the world's two most populous nations, who fought a brief border war in 1962, have greatly improved, largely due to burgeoning economic ties.

But the border dispute remains a sticking point.

The neighbours share a 3,500-kilometre border, largely along the icy Himalayan mountains.

Both sides claim the other is occupying parts of its territory.

New Delhi disputes Beijing's rule over 38,000 square kilometres of land on the Tibetan plateau, while China claims 90,000 square kilometres of territory ruled by India in the eastern part of the border.