Political dialogue, cultural diplomacy and economic cooperation will be three crucial components of president Pratibha Patil's maiden visit to China from May 26 during which she will also inaugurate the first Indian-style Buddhist temple 'white horse' in Luoyang.
The five-day visit will also focus on further strengthening Indo-China ties, which had witnessed several unpleasant incidents a few months back including Chinese incursions in Leh and verbal duel between the leaders of the two countries over Dalai Lama's visit to Arunachal Pradesh.
Patil has been invited by her Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao and her visit coincides with the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and China.
"She will visit Beijing, Luoyang and Shanghai. During delegation-level talks with president Hu, the two sides will discuss bilateral, regional and global issues," an external
affairs ministry statement said here today.
The president will also meet other Chinese leaders, including chairman of the National People's Congress Wu Bangguo and premier Wen Jiabao.
In Luoyang, the president will dedicate to the Chinese people an Indian-style Buddhist temple 'white house', which was inspired by the Sanchi Stupa in Madhya Pradesh. It took five years to build the temple at a cost of $4 million.
The president will also visit the country's commercial hub Shanghai where she will visit the Shanghai Expo 2010 and meet the India-China Business Forum members.
