China on Sunday called for a more cooperative approach in its ties with India, with Foreign Minister Wang Yi urging the two Asian powers to view each other as partners and opportunities rather than strategic rivals.
Speaking at his annual press conference on the sidelines of the National People’s Congress (NPC), Wang said both countries should follow the direction set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping to stabilise and improve bilateral relations.
Referring to the recent diplomatic engagements between the two leaders, Wang said Modi and Xi had a successful meeting in Tianjin last August. "Building on the fresh start enabled by their Kazan meeting in 2024, the Tianjin summit brought about further improvement in China-India relations," he added.
Highlighting signs of renewed engagement between the two neighbours, Wang said, “We are heartened to see re-energised interactions at all levels, a new record in bilateral trade, and closer people-to-people exchanges. All this has brought tangible benefits to the two peoples.”
On the future trajectory of ties, Wang said both countries “must maintain the correct strategic perception of each other as partner rather than rival, and opportunity instead of threat”.
“Both sides also must uphold good-neighbourliness and friendship, and jointly safeguard peace and stability in the border areas and focus on development,” he said.
"As each other’s important neighbours and members of the Global South, China and India enjoy profound civilisational ties and share extensive common interests," Wang said.
“Mutual trust and cooperation is beneficial to the development of the two countries, while division and confrontation is detrimental to the rejuvenation of Asia,” the Chinese foreign minister said.
He also emphasised that the two sides should adhere to the direction set by their leaders and remove external disruptions. “The two sides should follow the direction set by leaders and remove interference,” he said without elaborating.
Wang further said India and China should support each other in hosting BRICS summits. India is scheduled to host the summit this year, while China will host it in 2027.
BRICS, which originally comprised Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, has since expanded to include Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Ethiopia, Indonesia and Iran.
India-China relations, which remained frozen for five years following the military standoff in eastern Ladakh, began showing signs of normalisation after two meetings between Modi and Xi — first in Kazan, Russia in 2024, and later on the sidelines of the SCO summit in Tianjin last year.
Since then, both sides have resumed visa and flight services and initiated a series of measures aimed at restoring normal diplomatic engagement.