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New Delhi Last week, individual representatives and businessmen from India shared in a gathering — organised by the Xi Jinping government — of countries located in the Indian Ocean region. New Delhi, however, didn’t attend the forum in sanctioned capacity, ThePrint has learnt.
This was the first ever conference organised by the Chinese government in what’s being seen as yet another attempt by Beijing to assert its sphere of influence in the Indian Ocean region, which is gradationally getting a hotly- contest region, colliding with the US- led Indo- Pacific strategic frame, of which India is a pivotal part.
While China claimed that 19 countries shared in the conference — officially called ‘ China- Indian Ocean Region Development Cooperation Forum ’ — organised by the China International Development Cooperation Agency( CIDCA), Maldives and Australia have denied their attendance in an sanctioned capacity.The theme of the conference was ‘ Shared Development Theory and Practice from the Perspective of the Blue Economy ’.
sanctioned sources told ThePrint that while nothing from the Indian government was present at the conference, individualities may have attended it in a particular capacity.According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, India was represented by the Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry, 10 businessmen and a many academicians.
Subir Chakraborty, President of the Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industry addressed the opening form of the third China- South Asia Cooperation Forum nearly on the autumn of 19 November. Some Indian academics attended a rout event on China- Indian Ocean region thinktank forum and delivered reflections. Ten Indian businesses shared in the Expo, ” said Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning on 25 November.
Inaugurating the event Luo Zhaohui, president of CIDCA, also China’s currentVice-Foreign Minister, said in his opening reflections, “ China will strengthen cooperation with countries in the Indian Ocean region to grow the blue frugality, advance the perpetration of the GDI( Global Development Initiative) in the region, embark on the path to participated development, accelerate cooperation and work together to make a maritime community with a participated future. ”
The CIDCA, in a statement to the press, claimed that 19 countries that shared in the forum held in Kunming, Yunnan Province, are Indonesia, Pakistan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Maldives, Nepal, Afghanistan, Iran, Oman, South Africa, Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania, Seychelles, Madagascar, Mauritius, Djibouti, Australia, plus representatives of three transnational organisations.still, both Maldives and Australia Sunday snappily denied participation in sanctioned capacity. Both countries claimed they didn’t shoot government representatives but individualities attended the forum in their own capacity.
Participation by individualities or group of individualities from the Maldives, doesn’t constitute sanctioned representation by the Government of Maldives, ” said a statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Maldives.Official delegation to meetings, forums and conferences to represent the Maldives, as per transnational practice, will only take place through politic channels. thus, for this specific meeting, there was no sanctioned representation by the Government of Maldives, ” it added.
also, Australia also said it didn’t shoot any functionary from their government to attend the conference held in Kunming.Contrary to media reporting, no Australian Government functionary attended the Kunming China- Indian Ocean Forum on Development Cooperation, ” said Barry O’Farrell, High Commissioner of Australia to India in a tweet SundayThe envoy also stressed that Tim Watts, Australia’s Assistant Foreign Minister, attended the clerical meeting of the Indian Ocean Rim Association( IORA) held in Bangladesh on 24 November.
