From talks on resuming direct flights to a series of high-level bilateral visits, longtime rivals China and India are quietly and cautiously strengthening ties against the backdrop of US President Donald Trump's unpredictable approach to both.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is scheduled to visit New Delhi next week for talks with India's National Security Adviser Ajit Doval on their disputed Himalayan border, the second such meeting since a deadly clash in 2020 between Indian and Chinese troops, two people familiar with the matter said. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping at the end of the month when he travels to China — his first visit in seven years — to attend the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, a regional security bloc.
The engagements follow a thaw in India and China's five-year standoff after an agreement last October on patrolling their Himalayan border, which eased the strain on bilateral ties that had hurt trade, investment and air travel.
Relations were further boosted in recent weeks amid new tensions in India-US ties after decades of progress, analysts said, as Trump imposed a 50% tariff on Indian exports to the United States - one of the highest levels among Washington's strategic partners.
The United States and China, meanwhile, this week extended a tariff truce for another 90 days, staving off triple-digit duties on each other's goods.
China and India have already agreed to resume direct flights suspended since 2020 and are discussing easing trade barriers, including reopening border trade at three Himalayan crossings.
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