Huanqiu Times published an editorial on Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar’s visit to China on July 15 for attending the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting held in Tianjin and also making an official visit to China on the sidelines. It called it the first visit to China by an Indian foreign minister in five years, signaling that China–India relations are “starting to improve.”
The article listed several “practical issues between China and India” to be resolved:
- The border issue continues to be the most sensitive and complex aspect of bilateral relations. Establishing a stable and effective border trust mechanism, restoring strategic dialogue platforms, and enhancing multi-level security cooperation are essential steps for moving China–India relations toward maturity.
- Concrete, tangible improvements can help foster mutual trust at the societal level, including promoting the resumption of direct flights, restarting cultural and people-to-people exchanges, and strengthening academic and think tank interactions.
- Cooperation on multilateral platforms such as SCO and BRICS could be improved.
The article also warned that improving China–India relations will not happen overnight. Strategic mutual trust cannot be built through a single meeting or a single joint statement. Instead, it must be accumulated through long-term, continuous, and measurable engagement. What it requires is sustained political will, pragmatic consultation mechanisms, and – most importantly – mutual respect for each other’s core concerns.
Source: Huanqiu Times, July 14, 2025
https://opinion.huanqiu.com/article/4NUoO9YeyXA