NSA holds talks with Chinese negotiator Dai Bingguo

Contentious boundary issue and ways to boost bilateral ties were among the issues which figured during discussions between National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon and China's chief negotiator Dai Bingguo in New Delhi on Friday.

"Entire gamut of bilateral ties were taken up during the meeting between Menon and Dai here," official sources said but refused to give details of the meeting.

Dai is heading a delegation to the two-day BRICS (Brazil -Russia-India-China-South Africa) top security officials' meeting from today.

Menon and Dai met just over a month after their crucial informal boundary talks in China during which they reached 'common understanding' on the negotiations over framework for a boundary settlement.

The common understanding related to both sides officially agreeing to the progress made during the last 15 rounds of talks. After his talks with Dai last month, Menon had said the common understanding meant where the two sides stand on critical issues.

The understanding, which is yet to be revealed, reportedly referred to several issues relating to the vexed dispute, which from India's point of view covered 3,488 km while China claims that it is confined to a 2,000 km area in Arunachal Pradesh which it referred to as 'Southern Tibet'.

Friday's talks were also significant as it was Dai's last visit as a special representative and State Counsellor before his retirement in March.

He is the longest serving negotiator of China, who held talks with Menon's predecessors including Brajesh Mishra, J N Dixit and M K Narayanan.