NEW DELHI, Aug 19 – India and China have agreed to restart direct flights and boost trade and investment, marking a step toward rebuilding ties strained by the 2020 border clash.
The two countries are cautiously strengthening relations amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s unpredictable foreign policy, undertaking a series of high-level bilateral visits.
The Indian foreign ministry said the agreement includes reopening border trade at three designated points and facilitating visa procedures. Direct flights, suspended since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, do not yet have a confirmed resumption date.
The announcement came at the conclusion of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s two-day visit to New Delhi, where he held the 24th round of talks with India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval to address the decades-old border dispute. The discussions focused on troop withdrawals along the Himalayan frontier, border delimitation, and other boundary affairs.
China’s foreign ministry said the two sides have agreed to establish a working group to consult and coordinate on border matters and advance demarcation negotiations. The mechanism will extend talks to the eastern and middle sections of the border, while another round focusing on the western sector will be held as soon as possible. Both countries also agreed to meet again in China in 2026.
Following his talks with Wang, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote on X that “stable, predictable, constructive ties between India and China will contribute significantly to regional as well as global peace and prosperity.” Modi is scheduled to visit China at the end of this month to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit, marking his first visit to the country in over seven years.