The Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi is scheduled to land in New Delhi on August 18 for a diplomatic visit. The visit marks the maiden ministerial level diplomatic visit by Beijing to New Delhi, post the Galwan Clash of 2020. Wang Yi is said to hold bilateral talks with the National Security Advisor(NSA) Ajit Doval, predominantly on border issues and other bilateral flashpoints.
The visit by the Chinese Foreign Minister is the latest among the series of bilateral visits witnessed between New Delhi and Beijing. External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and NSA Ajit Doval had visited China in the previous months as a part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation(SCO) meetings. Prime Minister Modi as well, is set to visit Tianjin in China for the SCO Summit-level meet on August 31. This will be the Prime Minister’s maiden visit to China post the Galwan clash and after a duration of seven years.
Diplomatic manouvering to reset Sino-India ties
Post the Galwan Clash of 2020 in which nearly 20 Indian soldiers succumbed to death, diplomatic relations between New Delhi and Beijing had hit an all-time low. From high-level diplomatic visits, visa disbursal to direct flight connectivity, every aspect of bilateral relations was severely cold. However, as an impact of multiple rounds of military and diplomatic level talks, the bilateral relations began to see light.
In the aftermath of mutually accepted and gradual demilitarization, disengagement & de-escalation from the Depsang and Demchock regions of Eastern Ladakh which were last among the major friction points that led to Galwan clash, relations between India and China began to gain pace on a positive front. The process of restoration and resetting of relations drew further momentum after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks in Kazan, Russia in October 2024, on the sidelines of the 16th BRICS summit. The two leaders had welcomed the agreement for complete de-escalation & disengagement from the friction points and also agreed to work for peace & tranquility in the border areas to restore normalcy in the bilateral relations.
This was followed by a series of diplomatic exchanges between New Delhi and Beijing. Infact, when EAM Dr. S. Jaishankar visited Beijing for the SCO meet he briefed Xi Jinping on the recent developments in the India-China relations and also emphasized the importance of continuing in the same trajectory. Lately, as a sign of restoration of normalcy there was resumption of Kailash Mansarovar Yatra and also the renewal of tourist visa provisions for the Chinese citizens by the Indian embassy. Even direct flight connectivity between India and China are set to resume in a short span of time that were halted since the pandemic. China has also eased the restrictions on urea exports to India that are crucial for the sustenance of India’s agricultural sector.
Geopolitical rebalancing amidst Trump Tariff Tussle
Resetting of bilateral relations between India and China is an outcome of consistent diplomatic manouvering from both the sides, post the Galwan clash in 2020. However, the latest developments between New Delhi and Beijing is seeking more importance and attention as an impact of US President Donald Trump’s tariff tantrums and weaponization of trade.
US-India relations were hailed for its stability and mutual strategic vitality for more than a decade. However, due to a sudden set of events, such as New Delhi’s firm denial of the United States mediation in the Indo-Pak conflict, India’s energy imports from Russia, has stimulated an irked Trump to impose a stark 50% tariffs on Indian exports to the US. In this backdrop, New Delhi’s frequent diplomatic engagements with Beijing gains traction as China too has tussle with the US over tariffs and both the nations are in the process of trade negotiations.
Recently, when Trump imposed additional 25 per cent tariffs on India for purchasing the Russian oil, China had called it as a ‘tariff abuse’. Infact, Chinese embassy in India has issued multiple statements in support of New Delhi since the day Trump unleashed tariff war. Chinese Ambassador to India Xu Feihong exclaimed, “using tariffs as a weapon to suppress other countries violates the UN Charter, undermines WTO rules and is both unpopular and unsustainable”.
Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi while speaking on US tariffs had called for cooperation between New Delhi and Beijing in dealing with the Trump tariffs. “Making the dragon and elephant dance is the only right choice. Supporting instead of wearing each other down and strengthening cooperation instead of staying on guard”, Mr. Wang Yi had said.
The latest phase in Sino-India relations is definitely a ‘positive development’ and reduces the diplomatic burden or tension for New Delhi across its northern borders. However, this cannot be deemed as a complete overhaul in the bilateral relations. There are still scalable extent of trust deficits especially with respect to border security and ensuring India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. In this path of gradual restoration of Sino-India relations, the Trump’s tariff factor acts as a common point between New Delhi and Beijing to further stimulate the reset of bilateral relations in order to navigate common geopolitical challenge.
The accelerated momentum of India-China relations can be deemed as a timely strategic realignment to secure the respective economic and national security interests in the wake of tariff volatilities and trade uncertainties rising from Washington DC. For example, India and China, being the most populous countries of the world has to ensure their energy security. Thus both nations import oil from Russia in large quantities which is indeed the most contentious aspect while dealing with the USA. Both nations also need large markets as their export destinations, to protect their domestic industries and economic interests.
In this backdrop, accelerating New Delhi-Beijing ties reflects accurate strategic calculations and realpolitik actions to traverse the geopolitical upheavals and champion national security priorities. Beyond this strategic compulsion catalyzed by the current political and economic turmoil, Sino-India relations have to indeed travel a long path to comprehensively reorient the bilateral relations, devoid of any apprehensions, which is a distant dream and a herculean task, given India’s longstanding bonhomie with the USA and other countries which China look with an unease and on the other hand the ‘all weather partnership’ of China and Pakistan is deemed by India as a considerable threat.
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