Beijing: Describing as "important" the upcoming first meeting of the special political representatives of India and China on the vexed boundary issue, Beijing on October 21 hoped that a framework of principles to address protracted border dispute could be firmed up by the two sides.

"We think this is an important meeting", Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said when asked to comment on the October 23 meeting in New Delhi between Chinese Executive Vice Foreign Minister Dai Bingguo and National Security Adviser Brajesh Mishra.

A decision to appoint the special representatives was proposed by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee during his landmark visit to China in June and was promptly accepted by his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao.

"We hope that they would work on the framework of principles for the resolution of the border problem," Zhang told reporters.

Sources said Dai and Mishra, who are known to each other, would have in-depth talks on the boundary issue while taking into account the overall interests of Sino-Indian relations.

While an early breakthrough was not on the cards, analysts feel that the decision by the political leaders to deal the sensitive issue at the highest level itself was indeed a welcome step that could yield an early resolution.

In the joint declaration issued by Vajpayee and Wen, the two leaders reiterated their readiness to seek a "fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable solution through consultations on an equal footing."

PTI