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Biman Mukherji

As India and China reconfigure their relationship, US President Donald Trump’s steep trade tariffs may prove to be a blessing in disguise and bring greater urgency to efforts to mend ties between the two neighbours.
Peace talks have been ongoing, resulting in Indian and Chinese troops pulling back from their common borders last year, and there are other signs of possibly warmer bilateral ties.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Tianjin at the end of this month to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit, after China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi personally handed him an invitation from President Xi Jinping during Wang’s recent visit to India.
The two countries have agreed to resolve a vexing territorial dispute and resume two-way trade and direct flights after their relations plunged following a border clash in 2020.
At the same time, Trump’s tariffs on both countries have given ample reasons for Beijing and New Delhi to redouble their cooperation and seek greater common ground.
“First of all, there is no reason for them [India and China] to be hostile to each other,” said Yashwant Deshmukh, an independent political commentator, noting that trade and cultural exchanges have happened for thousands of years between the countries.
But he rued that the bonhomie was not happening “organically” and seemed to be driven partly because of external factors. “It has been expedited because of Trump’s trade issues,” he told This Week in Asia.

“On the whole, it [rebuilding the relationship] is a welcome move, but most people will think how long the bonhomie will last” if US tariffs were a major contributory factor, he added.
The secret sauce in the relationship had to be China and India looking at each other as partners rather than rivals, Deshmukh said.
During his visit, Modi is expected to hold several meetings on the sidelines in Tianjin, where more announcements are expected on troop withdrawal, trade, visa easing, resumption of flights, climate cooperation and people-to-people engagement, according to media reports.
Efforts to improve people-to-people contact through tourism and direct flights would help, but the biggest hurdle was the Indian-Chinese boundary dispute, said Harsh Pant, an international relations professor at King’s College London.
“The relationship between China and India still suffers from a huge trust deficit. Now, as things are normalising, it would be important for the two sides to seriously think about how to resolve the boundary question,” he added.
Bilateral border talks should be extended until all differences are resolved to ensure enduring peace.
The time is ripe, as there is greater recognition in India that China can be an investment partner rather than just a source market for goods.
India’s NITI Aayog, a premier policy think tank, recently proposed allowing Chinese companies to invest up to 24 per cent in Indian companies without requiring mandatory security clearances as part of moves to ease foreign direct investment restrictions.

The annual economic survey by the Indian government hinted at a potential pivot last year when it suggested Indian firms could partner with Chinese firms and help them integrate better into global supply chains.
From building electric vehicles to mobile phones, both sides have a lot to benefit mutually as both countries explore newer markets, from Africa to the Middle East, due to shifting global trade winds.
Efforts to build confidence could potentially reap richer rewards, as cooperation between India and China could significantly advance the Global South under the umbrella objectives of Brics. In this way, they can elevate their economic interests at the bilateral and multilateral levels.
Under the threat of steep US tariffs, many Asian nations have agreed to trade deals with the US by offering trade concessions, which may be difficult to fulfil without compromising their long-term economic interests.
If India and China were to forge close trade relations in the first place, it would have been tough for the US to push ahead with higher tariff imposition, especially in Asia. As they say, better late than never.


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Narendra Modi’s coming visit to Tianjin shows India and China are finding common ground, regardless of Trump’s policies


Narendra Modi’s coming visit to Tianjin shows India and China are finding common ground, regardless of Trump’s policies.


Donald Trump

Xi Jinping

China

India

Narendra Modi

Trade

Diplomacy

Brazil

Tianjin

Britain

United States

King’s College London (UK)

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.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Narendra Modi’s coming visit to Tianjin shows India and China are finding common ground, regardless of Trump’s policies

Narendra Modi’s coming visit to Tianjin shows India and China are finding common ground, regardless of Trump’s policies