India, China Ask World To Adhere To Panchsheel Principles

Ansari recalled that India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru had in parliament referred to Lord Buddha's use of Panchsheel as a moral concept and had welcomed it.

"In Myanmar, Panchsheel has deep roots in its Buddhist traditions. In China, Confucius had emphasized harmony in the midst of differences. It is thus evident that Panchsheel emanated from the civilisational matrix of Asia and is Asia's contribution towards building a just and democratic international order," he said.

"Panchsheel came to be accepted almost universally by countries and finally by the United Nations in the conduct of international relations. (Former) UN secretary general Dag Hammarskjold described them as 'a reaffirmation of the obligations and aims of the UN'."

To mark the 60th anniversary of the Panchsheel agreement, the Indian vice president said, India and China decided to celebrate the year 2014 as the 'Year of Friendly Exchanges' during Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's visit to New Delhi in May 2013.

Stating that he was confident that various programmes under the Year of Friendly Exchanges would help forge a stronger relationship between India and China, Ansari said: "India and China are ancient civilizations. We are neighbours. We are strategic partners. Historically, there has been much that has bound us together, not merely through the exchange of goods and commodities but through a flourishing interchange of ideas, values and philosophies."

He also said that India-Myanmar relations are rooted in the shared historical, ethnic, cultural and religious ties.

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