Mr Singh’s first visit as prime minister to the neighbouring country is being viewed as the first opportunity for India to engage the Chinese leadership on some key issues.

Commerce and Industry minister Kamal Nath has already reached the Chinese capital to prepare the ground of talks on cooperation in trade and economic fields.

Meanwhile, in a statement before his departure, Mr Singh said his talks with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and President Hu Jintao would seek to “enhance our relation both bilaterally and at the global level.” 

Accompanying the prime minister is his National Security Advisor M K Narayanan who, in his capacity as the Government’s Special Representative, is engaged in talks with his designated Chinese Special Representative.

Incursions

India’s concerns on the boundary issue was made known by his senior-most ministerial colleague and External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee in an interview to a television channel just hours before the prime minister’s departure for Beijing. Though Mr Mukherjee sought to reassure that there was no reason to panic, he said that the Chinese army was “sometimes” intruding into the Indian territory along the long Line of Actual Control (LaC).

“Sometimes incursions take place. (But) every incursion is taken care of. It is being addressed through established mechanism,” Mr Mukherjee said.

It may be noted that as per a 1993 agreement, the two sides are bound to maintain peace and tranquillity along the border pending resolution of the dispute and without prejudice to each other’s claims. During the last one year, China has also upped the ante by claiming that the entire Arunachal Pradesh belonged to China.