The leaders of India and China, Narendra Modi and Xi Jinping, met on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in China. PM Modi said he is “committed” to improve relations between the two countries based on trust, respect, and sensitivity during his first visit in seven years.
PM Modi said during their meeting in Tianjin that the recent withdrawal of troops from the border has made things “peaceful and stable.” He also talked about the return of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra and direct flights between the two nations. These are signs that relations are becoming better after being very bad after the Galwan Valley conflicts in 2020.
President Xi Jinping said that India and China should be “friends and good neighbors” in his speech. He remarked that the two most populous countries in the world need to work together for the “welfare of all humanity” and to make the world more multi-polar.
This conference is important for both countries at this time in history. After President Donald Trump put a 50% tax on Indian exports and a 25% duty on buying Russian oil, India is under further economic pressure from the U.S. This is said to have given India a new reason to improve its relationship with China, which is its second-largest trading partner.