India, China envoys discuss border peace, trade to boost cooperation

It is important for the two countries to pull back their troops amassed along their disputed border in the western Himalayas

Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on Monday discussed border peace, trade issues and bilateral exchanges, aiming to strengthen cooperation between the two countries.

"We had productive conversations on our economic and trade issues, pilgrimages, people-to-people contacts, river data sharing, border trade, connectivity and bilateral exchanges," Jaishankar said.

He added that the discussions would contribute to building a stable, cooperative and forward-looking relationship between India and China.

Wang arrived in the Indian capital on Monday for a two-day visit during which he will hold the 24th round of border talks with Indian National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and also meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Earlier in the day, Jaishankar had said that discussing border issues was very important because the basis for any positive momentum in India-China ties was the ability to jointly maintain peace in border areas.

"Having seen a difficult period in our relationship, our two nations now seek to move ahead. This requires a candid and constructive approach from both sides," Jaishankar told Wang in his opening remarks.

It is also important for the two countries to pull back their troops amassed along their disputed border in the western Himalayas since a deadly border clash in 2020, Jaishankar said.

Wang's visit comes days before Modi travels to China - his first visit in seven years - to attend the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, a regional political and security group that also includes Russia.

Relations between the Asian giants began to thaw in October after New Delhi and Beijing reached a milestone pact to lower military tensions on their Himalayan border following talks between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Modi in Russia.

Ties between the two countries deteriorated sharply following a military clash on that border in the summer of 2020 in which 20 soldiers from India and four from China were killed.