Modi-Xi talks signal a cautious India-China thaw, with both sides seeking border peace, stronger trade, greater connectivity and a more stable strategic relationship, reports India Daily News Desk
The meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in New Delhi has set a positive trajectory for India-China ties, with Beijing calling for recent understandings to be translated into concrete action.
An editorial in China Daily, the Chinese Communist Party-backed English-language newspaper, said the two countries should manage their differences through dialogue while exploring new areas of cooperation and building momentum towards long-term peaceful coexistence.
The editorial followed Xi’s first visit to India in seven years for the September 12-13 BRICS Summit, where he held talks with Modi on the future of bilateral relations, border stability, trade and wider cooperation.
The two leaders agreed that differences should not become disputes and reaffirmed the need to approach ties from a strategic and long-term perspective. Modi stressed that mutual respect, mutual sensitivity and mutual interest should guide the relationship.
New Delhi also made clear that peace and tranquillity along the border remain an essential basis for further developing bilateral ties. Both sides expressed commitment to finding a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable settlement to the boundary question.
China Daily said recent high-level meetings between Modi and Xi had helped stabilise relations and prevent disagreements from overwhelming the broader relationship. It argued that the two countries should draw on their respective strengths, support each other’s development and expand cooperation.
The economic relationship provides a major incentive for the thaw. Bilateral goods trade reached a record $155.6 billion in 2025, according to Chinese customs data, although the trade remains heavily skewed in China’s favour. India imported around $132 billion worth of goods from China during the 2025-26 financial year, leaving New Delhi with a trade deficit of more than $100 billion.
The Modi-Xi meeting therefore placed economic issues alongside strategic concerns. The two sides agreed on the need to address structural trade imbalances, supply-chain concerns and market-access barriers, while promoting business links, cultural exchanges and greater mobility.
The two countries have already taken steps towards restoring normal engagement after relations deteriorated following the deadly 2020 border clash. Direct flights and other exchanges have resumed, while border trade through the Nathu La route has also reopened after a prolonged suspension.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi subsequently described the understanding reached by Modi and Xi as a major consensus that India and China should view each other as partners rather than rivals. Beijing has also stressed that institutional exchanges are gradually returning and cooperation is expanding.
However, major challenges remain. Military deployments along the disputed Himalayan frontier continue, border negotiations are unfinished and India’s large trade deficit with China remains a sensitive issue.
The emerging thaw is therefore less a full reset than a cautious effort to stabilise ties. But with China set to take over the BRICS chairmanship in 2027, both sides have an opportunity to build on the latest diplomatic momentum and prevent strategic rivalry from derailing wider cooperation.
