India and China pursue “strategic autonomy” and “their relations should not be seen through a third country lens”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday during a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The two leaders met on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit in Tianjin. This was Modi’s first visit to China in seven years, Reuters reported.

The bilateral talks came against the backdrop of both India and China facing so-called reciprocal tariffs from the United States.

The Donald Trump administration had announced on August 6 that it would double the tariffs on goods imported from India to 50% for purchasing Russian oil amid the Ukraine war. A 25% so-called reciprocal tariff had already taken effect.

The doubled tariffs took effect on Wednesday.

On Sunday, India’s Ministry of External Affairs stated that Modi and Xi welcomed the steady progress in bilateral ties between New Delhi and Beijing. They also reiterated that differences between the two countries should not be allowed to escalate into disputes, the ministry added.

“The two leaders noted with satisfaction the successful disengagement last year and the maintenance of peace and tranquility along the border areas since then,” stated the ministry. “They expressed commitment to a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable resolution of the boundary question.”

Modi and Xi also highlighted “the role of their two economies to stabilise world trade”.

“We agreed on the importance of maintaining peace and tranquility in border areas and reaffirmed our commitment to cooperation based on mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual sensitivity,” Modi said in a post on X.

China and India ‘are partners, not rivals’: Xi

Xi told Modi during the meeting that China and India “are cooperation partners, not rivals”, reported state-run China Global Television Network.

A “cooperative pas de deux of the dragon and the elephant” should be the right choice for the two countries, he further said.

Xi described China and India as “two major ancient civilisations of the east” and among the oldest members of the Global South, stressing that this made it crucial for both to shoulder the responsibility of improving the well-being of their people and contributing to the progress of humanity, reported China Global Television Network.

On August 21, Chinese Ambassador Xu Feihong said that the US’ punitive tariffs on India were an act of bullying, and that Beijing would “firmly stand” with New Delhi against unfair trade practices.

India and China have been engaged in rebuilding their bilateral ties.

Border tensions between India and China escalated in June 2020 when a violent face-off between Indian and Chinese soldiers took place in Ladakh’s Galwan Valley along the Line of Actual Control. It led to the death of 20 Indian soldiers. Beijing said that the clash left four of its soldiers dead.

Following this, both countries deployed thousands of troops along with heavy artillery in the region.

Since the Galwan clashes, China and India have held several rounds of military and diplomatic talks to resolve their border standoff.

In October, the two countries announced that they had reached a patrolling arrangement along the Line of Actual Control, “leading to the disengagement” of the two militaries in eastern Ladakh.

📰 Crime Today News is proudly sponsored by DRYFRUIT & CO – A Brand by eFabby Global LLC

Design & Developed by Yes Mom Hosting