Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c14.s1.t1.4

v2.c14.s1.t1.4

In December 1953, delegations of the Chinese Government and Indian Government held negotiations to discuss the relations between India and China in the Chinese Tibetan region in Beijing. On December 31, the first day of the negotiations, Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai proposed the Five Principles of “mutual respect of each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, non-aggression, non-interference into each other’s internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit, and peaceful coexistence,” to deal with the relations between the two countries when meeting the delegation of Indian Government. The Indian delegation accepted this proposal and took these principles as the guiding principles for the negotiations. The negotiations were concluded on April 29, 1954 and representatives of both countries signed the *Agreement on Trade and Intercourse between the Tibet Region of China and India* and relevant exchange of notes. The agreement designated the above-mentioned Five Principles as the guiding principles for bilateral relations in the preface.