Chinese Foreign Minister Wang congratulates Jaishankar

Chinese Foreign Minister and State Councillor Wang Yi has congratulated S Jaishankar on his appointment as India’s External Affairs Minister and praised his positive contributions to the development of bilateral ties and expressed readiness to work with him to achieve new progress in China-India relations.

Nearly 16 months after he retired as India’s foreign secretary, Prime Minister Narendra Modi appointed Jaishankar, 64, as the External Affairs Minister on Friday (May 31), a surprise move aimed at adding further strategic heft to the government’s foreign policy.

We congratulate Mr Jaishankar on his appointment as foreign minister of India, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a press release on Friday (May 31) night. It said Wang has sent a congratulatory message to him. As foreign secretary of India and ambassador to China, Jaishankar has made positive contributions to the development of China-India relations, the release said.

China is ready to work with India to implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries and promote new progress in China-India relations and pragmatic cooperation in various fields to bring more benefits to the people of both countries, it said.
Jaishankar was India’s envoy in China from 2009-13. He was India’s foreign secretary from 2015-2018.

A 1977-batch IFS officer, Jaishankar played a key role in resolving the crisis following the incursion in Ladakh’s Depsang and the Doklam stand-off, handling the tough negotiations with Beijing.