On Wednesday, India Today and several other Indian media outlets, citing informed sources, reported that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi plans to visit China from August 31 to September 1 to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Tianjin. If the visit materializes, it will mark the Indian Prime Minister’s first trip to China in seven years. Although the news has not yet been confirmed by the official authorities of China and India, it has drawn widespread attention from the international community as soon as it was released. Just as US magazine The Diplomat commented, “The trend in the past decade has seen the two neighbors embracing each other and then falling out … the time has come again for them to explore yet another round of engagement.” Together, China and India account for over one-third of the world’s population, and both economies and their global influence are on the rise. At this crucial juncture, the trajectory of China-India relations carries even more reasons to capture global attention.
Observers have noted that despite lingering differences and disputes between China and India, there have been signs of warming in their bilateral relations. Following the 2020 border clash, China-India relations went through a long period of low ebb, severely impacting political trust, economic ties and people-to-people exchanges. In October 2024, the successful meeting between the Chinese and Indian leaders in Kazan set the tone for a fresh restart in bilateral relations. At all levels, both countries have been upholding the important consensus reached by the two leaders – namely, that “China and India are each other’s development opportunity rather than threat, and cooperation partner rather than competitor.” Anchoring on development as the greatest “common denominator,” the two sides have continued to meet in half way and maintain the momentum of progress.
Since June this year, India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar have visited China respectively – a level of engagement rarely seen in recent years. Currently, various previously suspended bilateral mechanisms are being resumed or are in the process of restarting. Both sides have also vowed to not let the border issue become an obstacle to overall bilateral relations. In the area of people-to-people exchanges, the resumption of Indian pilgrimages to Mount Gang Renpoche and Lake Mapam Yun Tso in Southwest China’s Xizang Autonomous Region, as well as the reinstatement of tourist visa issuance for Chinese citizens traveling to India, have all sent out positive signals. Both sides also hope to seize the opportunity of the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties to achieve greater progress in China-India relations.
If Modi visits China this time, it will present another favorable opportunity to consolidate the positive momentum in China-India relations. However, there are still many pressing issues between the two countries that need to be resolved. From “reviewing” and suppressing Chinese capital, restricting visas for Chinese technical personnel, to the long-delayed full resumption of direct flights between the two countries, India has imposed numerous barriers, which have become stumbling blocks that seriously hinder bilateral exchanges. This not only limited the depth of China-India economic and trade cooperation, but also damaged mutual understanding and trust between the two peoples. If India can take Modi’s visit as an opportunity to promptly adjust its China policy and remove unnecessary barriers, there will be much greater room for the development of China-India relations.
News of Modi’s visit to China comes at a time when the US government has announced a significant hike in tariffs on Indian goods. Some Western media outlets have interpreted Modi’s visit as an attempt to “hedge against” the US. However, such a view is rather one-sided. Defending free trade and countering unilateral tariffs is the shared will of most countries in the world today. From the perspective of China, China-India cooperation is not aimed at any third party. As two ancient civilizations with long-standing friendly exchanges, two major emerging economies, and key members of the Global South, both countries are at critical stages of their respective modernization journeys. They share broad common interests, and their relationship follows its own historical logic and internal momentum. The recent “warming” of China-India ties clearly shows that Washington’s attempt to draw New Delhi into its so-called “Indo-Pacific strategy” to contain China does not align with India’s independent foreign policy.
China and India are neighbors, and the list of areas in which they can cooperate is long. If Modi’s visit to China this time can be made, it will provide a broader platform for cooperation between China and India. As regional powers, China and India have extensive shared interests in areas such as counterterrorism, trade, and cultural exchange. Deepening cooperation through the SCO not only benefits their respective development, but also contributes to regional peace and prosperity. As a Hindu proverb goes, “Help your brother’s boat across, and your own will reach the shore.” A healthy China-India relationship brings positive spillover effects to the region and the world. We welcome Prime Minister Modi to visit China with genuine intentions to improve bilateral ties and pragmatic cooperation plans, and to jointly usher in a new chapter of “the dragon and the elephant dancing together.”
