Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping have agreed to work towards a “fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable” solution to the India-China border issue and pledged to expand trade and investment ties recognising the role of the two economies to stabilise global trade.
In their wide-ranging talks, the two leaders largely focused on boosting trade and investment ties, a move that came against the backdrop of disruptions in global trade triggered by US President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs including a whopping 50 per cent on Indian goods.
In the meeting held on the margins of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, PM Modi underlined the importance of peace and tranquility on the border areas for the continued development of India-China ties and said that New Delhi is committed to advancing the relations based on “mutual trust, respect, and sensitivity”.
The two leaders vowed to expand bilateral trade and investment ties, reduce trade deficit and agreed to expand common ground on bilateral, regional, and global issues and challenges like terrorism and fair trade in multilateral platforms, according to an Indian readout.
“Our cooperation is linked to the interests of 2.8 billion people of our two countries. This will also pave the way for the welfare of all humanity,” Modi said in Hindi in his televised opening remarks.
Modi and Xi recognised the role of the two economies to stabilise world trade and underlined the need to proceed from a political and strategic direction to expand bilateral trade and investment ties and reduce trade deficit, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in the readout.
“The prime minister noted that India and China both pursue strategic autonomy, and their relations should not be seen through a third country lens,” it said.
