(TibetanReview.net, Sep04, 2012) Police in the Indian capital New Delhi arrested on Sep 2 afternoon three Tibetan youths who tried to stage a protest outside the Chinese embassy as China’s Defence Minister Mr Liang Guanglie arrived in Mumbai for a five-day official visit to the country. The activists of the Students for a Free Tibet also burned a Chinese national flag and were taken to a nearby police station.
Liang is leading a 23-member delegation, including Yang Jinshan, commander of the Tibet military district. The visit takes place on China’s initiative, the Times of India Sep 1 cited an unnamed Indian official as saying.
China’s official China Daily newspaper Sep 2 cited “experts” as saying the visit, the first by a Chinese defence minister in eight years, was a sign that military exchanges between China and India were back on track. The report said the defense ministers of the two countries were expected to discuss issues such as joint military exercises and border security. Reuters Sep 2 cited Indian Defence Minister Mr AK Antony as saying the two countries may announce a new round of joint military exercises, building on a recent joint naval drill in Shanghai.
China Daily cited Fu Xiaoqiang, an expert on South Asian studies at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, as saying Liang’s visit showed that military exchanges between Asia’s two largest powers have “returned to normal. He had lasso said the visit would enrich the two countries’ cooperation in military and security.
Liang visits India as a part of a three nation tour of Asian neighbours, beginning with Sir Lanka on Aug 28. After India, he visits Laos.