India Wednesday said it welcomed investments from giant neighbour and economic rival China but New Delhi will give its go-ahead only after its security concerns are satisfied. Economic ties with China — with whom India is slowly mending ties after a brief but bitter border conflict in 1962 — "has shown a rapid increase," foreign ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna said in a statement.
"The number of Chinese companies operating in India and Indian companies operating in China has grown significantly.
"While we welcome foreign investments and companies in India, this has to be in accordance with our relevant domestic laws and regulations, and taking into consideration … our security concerns and assessments," Sarna said.
"As part of this policy, we also welcome investments from China and we are confident that the India-China economic engagement will continue to expand and grow in the future."
Sarna's statement comes days after a report in the Times of India said New Delhi had decided not to allow Chinese companies to invest in or manage any Indian port due to "security concerns."
The report said Hong Kong-based Hutchison Port Holdings had been waiting for security clearances to build container terminals in Mumbai, India's financial hub, and the southern port city of Chennai but the company had been ruled out due to security worries.
New Delhi's decision eliminates future Chinese participation in an upgrade of 13 ports across India which had expected to see investments of about 610 billion rupees (13 billion dollars), it added.
Other reports said India rejected a 60 million dollar investment proposal from Chinese telecom major Huawei last August.
Source: Agence France-Presse
