'US-China relationship has to get back to business quickly'

The relationship between China and the United States, which has gone through a bumpy ride, has to get back on track as soon as possible, a top Obama Administration official has said.

"We've gone through a bit of a bumpy path here, and I think there's an interest both within the United States and China to get back to business as usual as quickly as possible," Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs P J Crowley said.

The acknowledgment comes in the wake of the differences between the two countries and even exchange of words on key issues like human rights, arms sale to Taiwan, the Dalai Lama meeting President Obama and Iran.

US Deputy Secretary of State Jim Steinberg is visiting Beijing this week to discuss with Chinese officials on a wide range of issues.

"We have a very broad, deep, complex relationship with China. There are many areas where we have achieved a consensus view. North Korea would be a great example of that. There are some areas where we do not yet have a convergent view. Iran might be an example of that," Crowley said.

"We have different perceptions of our national interest, you know, when you talk about dialogue with the Dalai Lama, for example, or you talk about regional security issues, perhaps involving Taiwan," Crowley said, adding that he expects that the US Deputy Secretary will talk about the full range of these issues.

"We have a common interest in stability in the region; we have a common interest in working together on issues like climate and the environment. We have a common interest in working on issues such as piracy in and around the Horn of Africa," he said.

The US-China relationship, which has recently seen some issues crop up, could be refocused with both the countries having the opportunity to understand each others perspective and views, Crowley added.

Pak to buy 14 Chinese fighter jets, 114 more may come

In a major move to boost its air warfare capability, Pakistan is to purchase 36 J-10 fighter aircraft from China in a deal worth more than USD 1.4 billion, with options open for induction of more similar aircraft. China will supply the 36 J-10 fighter jets, enough to equip two squadrons, under a preliminary agreement that could lead to "more sales", a Pakistani official has said. Pakistan might buy "larger numbers" of the multi-role aircraft in the future but has not signed any deal to purchase as many as 150 jets, the official told the Financial Times.

The J-10 or Jian 10 is China's most advanced combat aircraft and is the third generation fighter comparable to American F-16 Fighting Falcons. Islamabad and Beijing are also collaborating to build an advanced fighter -- JF-17 or "Thunder" and the first of these aircraft are expected to roll out by the end of this month, air force chief Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman said recently. China is one of the main arms suppliers of Pakistan and has sold combat jets to it for over three decades. But Beijing has seldom supplied Pakistan with advanced fighter aircraft like the J-10. Pakistan bought Mirage jets from France in the 1970s and F-16s from the US in the 1980s.

Pakistan has a fleet of 45 F-16s that have been used to some degree in anti militancy operations in Swat and South Waziristan, defence experts said. The US recently agreed to sell Pakistan another 18 new F-16s and officials also expect the Americans to supply about a dozen used aircraft. The Pakistan Air Force plans to acquire at least 250 JF-17s over the next four to five years, which would become its future mainstay. Defence experts have described Pakistan's agreement with China to buy the J-10 jets as a "landmark event" in the defence relationship between the two countries.

"This agreement should not simply be seen in the narrow context of Pakistan's relations with China," said Abdul Qayyum, a retired Pakistani general. "There is a wider dimension. By sharing its advanced technology with Pakistan, China is... also saying to the world that its defence capability is growing rapidly," he said.

India urges China to stop projects in Pakistan Kashmir

India urged China on Wednesday to stop building projects inside the Pakistan-ruled part of the disputed Kashmir region, the latest salvo prompted by a decades-long border dispute between the Asian giants.

The sharp exchanges between the two sides underline the fragility of their relations despite a warming of ties in recent years, primarily on the back of burgeoning trade. The two sides fought a brief but bloody war in 1962.

"We hope that the Chinese side will take a long-term view of the India-China relations, and cease such activities in areas illegally occupied by Pakistan," an Indian foreign ministry statement said. India was reacting to a comment by Chinese President Hu Jintao reported by the official new agency Xinhua that China was "glad" to carry on the Pakistani projects.

It came a day after Beijing said it was "seriously dissatisfied" at a visit by India's prime minister to the disputed Himalayan region of Arunachal Pradesh that is controlled by India but claimed by China.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh travelled to the mountainous state, twice the size of Switzerland, earlier this month to woo voters ahead of a state assembly election.

Both countries jostle for resources and influence as they seek a global role. India has several anti-dumping cases against China pending with the WTO.

There has been a flurry of reports in Indian media of Chinese incursions along the border -- shrugged off by both governments -- and India this month protested against a Chinese embassy policy of issuing different visas to residents of Kashmir.

Beijing lays claim to 90,000 sq km (34,750 sq mile) of land in Arunachal Pradesh, and had already expressed its anger about a planned visit by the Dalai Lama in November. New Delhi sees Beijing as backing Pakistan and says Chinese involvement in Pakistan-held Kashmir was to undermine India.

India holds 45 percent of the disputed Himalayan region while Pakistan controls a third. China holds the remainder of Kashmir.

India and Pakistan, which claim Kashmir in full, have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir since their independence from Britain in 1947.

"The Chinese side is fully aware of India's position and our concerns about Chinese activities in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir," the Indian statement said.

China is helping build a hydro-electric power plant and highways in Pakistan-ruled Kashmir.

New Delhi also expressed concern on Wednesday over increased incursions by Pakistan-based militants into Indian Kashmir that has led to sudden spurt of separatist violence in the region.

High alert along India-China border in Uttarakhand

Indian security forces were on high alert on the vast India-China border amid reports of fresh Chinese incursions into Uttarakhand.

The reports of incursions came from border areas of Rimkhim and Barahoti in Chamoli district with a worried Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank asking Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to deploy more troops along the long, porous borders with Tibet, which had not reported any major incident since the 1962 conflict.

Pokhriyal added that the state government had urged the Centre to set up a specialised mountain force in Uttarakhand keeping in view its 370-km-long border with China. Last month also,

the chief minister had demanded a similar force from the Centre.

On the other hand, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) said its personnel were on high alert along the border, but denied reports that the Chinese army had made any incursions into the Indian border. DIG Sanjay Singhal said the ITBP personnel had not sighted any movement of Chinese troops along the border.

However, Singhal said some civilians, mostly shepherds, from China came into the Indian side during the monsoon season, which he said was not an “unusual” thing on the Uttarakhand-Tibet border, particularly in the Barahoti area in Chamoli district.

Meanwhile, the army has also been put on alert on the border particularly along the snow-clad mountains of Chamoli district.

India recently accused Chinese troops of entering into its territory in the Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir.