China and India agree on six-point consensus as they resume high-level border talks
The meeting is part of a diplomatic mechanism that was halted after deadly clashes broke out along the Himalayan frontier five years ago
China and India reached a six-point consensus following border talks between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and India’s national security adviser Ajit Doval in Beijing on Wednesday.
They agreed to “continue to take measures to maintain peace and tranquillity in the border areas and promote the healthy and stable development of bilateral relations”, according to a statement issued by the Chinese foreign ministry.
The top diplomats “reaffirmed their commitment to continue seeking a fair, reasonable, and mutually acceptable package solution to the boundary issue” and to take “positive measures to promote this process”. The package settlement, first agreed upon in 2005, outlines the guiding principles for resolving the border dispute.
The two countries pledged to strengthen cross-border exchanges and cooperation, including resuming Indian pilgrimages to China, revitalising cross-border river cooperation, and renewing border trade, the statement said.
Additionally, they agreed to hold the next round of special representatives’ meetings in India next year, with the exact timing to be determined later through diplomatic channels.
The agreement represents a significant milestone in the ongoing efforts by the Asian neighbours to resolve their decades-long Himalayan border dispute, and comes as New Delhi is also deepening its strategic ties with Washington, particularly in countering Beijing’s growing influence in the Indo-Pacific region.
