Beijing and New Delhi on Wednesday expressed their willingness to strengthen mutual political trust, resume dialogue mechanisms and strengthen cooperation in trade and culture, as senior officials met in Beijing to discuss border issues. Analysts noted that the move has significant potential to strengthen bilateral ties.

Vice President Han Zheng met with India’s Special Representative and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. Doval was in Beijing to co-chair the 23rd meeting of special representatives on the China-India border issue with Wang Yi, who is China’s special representative on the China-India border issue and director of the Office of the Central Boundary Commission Sino-Indian. Foreign Affairs.

This bilateral mechanism, initiated in 2003, aims to comprehensively resolve the border dispute between the two countries. Over the years, the mechanism has convened 22 meetings, the most recent being held in India in 2019.

In October, Chinese and Indian leaders met in Kazan, Russia, where they agreed to make good use of the mechanism, maintain peace and tranquility in the border areas, and work towards a fair and reasonable settlement of the border question.

During the discussions in Beijing, Han stressed that China and India, as ancient civilizations and emerging great powers, exercised “global influence and strategic importance” through their commitment to independence, unity and cooperation.

As 2025 marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and India, Han urged the two countries to maintain high-level exchanges, foster political mutual trust and gradually resume institutional dialogues, exchanges and cooperation in various sectors to stabilize bilateral relations.

Doval expressed India’s keenness to strengthen strategic communication and expand mutually beneficial cooperation with China, thereby injecting new impetus into the relationship.

During the meeting, Wang called on China and India to channel their resources toward development and revitalization while placing the border issue in an appropriate place in their overall bilateral relations.

In response, Doval said India was committed to maintaining pragmatic communication with China to create conditions for a possible resolution of the border issue.

The two representatives reached a six-point consensus, including a commitment to seek a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable solution to the border issue, based on the political guidelines established in 2005. The two sides agreed to refine regulations control of border areas and to build confidence. take measures to ensure lasting peace and tranquility in the border regions.

Additionally, they pledged to strengthen cross-border exchanges and cooperation, including resuming Indian pilgrimages to China’s Xizang Autonomous Region, advancing cross-border river cooperation and promoting border trade via the Nathu La Pass.

Since the 2020 border conflict, Beijing and New Delhi have held 21 rounds of China-India Corps commander-level meetings and 32 meetings of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on China-India Border Affairs.

Wang Shida, a researcher at the Institute of South Asian Studies of the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, said détente between China and India serves the interests of both nations.

“With each country having more than 1.4 billion people, development should be the biggest common denominator between the two neighbors,” Wang said. He added that the resumption of negotiations is crucial to unlocking the potential for cooperation in a wide range of areas.

(In association with Asia News Network)