India, China share 'similar concerns in Afghanistan'

In the wake of the planned withdrawal of NATO troops in Afghanistan, India and China share similar concerns of minimizing violence in Afghanistan to protect their investments in the war-torn country, said a local daily Thursday.

The India-China dialogue on Afghanistan is scheduled to be held in Beijing Thursday for the first time, which is widely reported by Indian newspapers.

The Hindu, a leading Indian daily highlighted two points of commonality between India and China while discussing Afghanistan their mutual interest in investing in the country and their respective influence on Afghanistan from a strategic point of view.

The Hindu said that while India has more political influence in Kabul, China "scores over India in its ability to influence the behaviour of violence prone groups through its close ally Pakistan. "

From Indian side the talks will be led by Y K Sinha, Additional Secretary, Pakistan Afghanistan Iran, (PAI) of the external affairs ministry, and his counterparts in the Chinese foreign ministry, as per official sources.

The meeting is taking place in the backdrop of talks between the National Security Advisors of India, China and Russia held in Moscow recently to discuss the situation in Afghanistan.