• Modi reiterates importance of border peace, commits to ‘fair’ resolution of boundary question

• Indian premier to visit to China for summit of Shanghai Cooperation Organization, also to meet Chinese President Xi

ANKARA

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said bilateral ties with China had made “steady progress.”

He made the comments after China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi was received by the Indian prime minister in New Delhi.

“Glad to meet Foreign Minister Wang Yi,” Modi said through the US social media company X.

Improvement in relations was guided by “respect for each other's interests and sensitivities,” said Modi, urging “stable, predictable, constructive ties” between India and China, which will contribute significantly to regional as well as “global peace and prosperity.”

Wang is on his first trip to India since 2022 after ties between the Himalayan neighbors spiraled down in 2019, leading to border clashes in the Ladakh region of the disputed Jammu and Kashmir in May 2020, which left 24 rival soldiers dead.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Chinese diplomat held a meeting with Indian national security adviser Ajit Doval for the 24th round of boundary talks.

The trip also comes as the US-India strategic ties have witnessed strain under US President Donald Trump's second term, as Washington has punished New Delhi with staggering 50% tariffs, accusing the world’s most populous country of “unfair trade” and “funding” Russia’s “war machine” as the armed conflict in Ukraine continues.

New Delhi has pushed back on tariffs, calling them “unjust and unfair."

Separately, Modi’s office said in a statement that the prime minister during the meeting “emphasized the importance of maintaining peace and tranquility on the border, and reiterated India's commitment to a fair, reasonable, and mutually acceptable resolution of the boundary question.”

Indian officials said Wang on Tuesday handed over a message and invitation from Chinese President Xi Jinping to Modi for the leaders’ summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization to be held in Tianjin later this month.

Modi thanked Xi for the invitation and conveyed his acceptance, said the Indian statement.

It added that Modi "underlined that stable, predictable, and constructive ties between India and China will contribute significantly to regional and global peace and prosperity.”

Boundary talks held

Wang’s meeting with Modi came after the 24th round of boundary talks with Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.

Wang told Doval that China-India relations “entered a steady development track,” with the border issue remaining “stable and improving,” according to a readout released by Beijing.

He said the two nations share “common values and extensive common interests,” urging both countries to “enhance mutual trust, expand exchanges and cooperation, and jointly promote consensus, clarify directions, and set goals in border control, demarcation negotiations, and cross-border exchanges.”

In return, Doval said that amid current challenges faced by the two nations, it is needed “to enhance understanding, deepen trust, and strengthen cooperation,” adding that India adheres to “one-China policy,” according to the Chinese statement.