Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at his official residence, 7 Lok Kalyan Marg, at 5:30 pm on Tuesday, August 19. The meeting has been confirmed by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). This is Wang’s first visit to India in three years, indicating a possible soften in relations between India and China, the two major Asian countries.
The meeting comes after crucial talks between India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Wang on Monday in which Jaishankar said the two countries are now ready to move forward after “difficult times”. He made it clear that “differences should not become a cause of dispute and competition should not take the form of conflict.”
According to China’s Foreign Ministry, Wang stressed the need for India and China to work together to promote multipolarity amid growing “unilateral pressure” globally. He urged the two countries to see each other as “partners and prospects” and not “adversaries or threats”.
The timing of the meeting is also significant as it comes just ahead of PM Modi’s upcoming visit to China. This will be Modi’s first visit in seven years.
The two countries’ relations have been strained since the violent clashes in the Galwan Valley in 2020. However, recent developments point to efforts being taken to reduce this tension. China has eased restrictions imposed on the export of urea to India, India has resumed tourist visas for Chinese citizens, and according to Bloomberg, Indian companies are now exploring possibilities of collaboration with Chinese tech firms.
At Monday’s meeting, Wang assured cooperation on three key demands of India, fertilizers, rare earths and tunnel boring machines. China, which has the largest reserves of rare earth metals and is a leader in production and processing, plays a key role in the global supply chain in the sector. These metals are extremely important for India’s technology, energy and infrastructure sectors.
Wang’s visit to India is taking place at a time when US-India relations are also strained. Former US President Donald Trump has increased import duty on Indian products by 50 percent and imposed an additional 25 percent duty on the purchase of Russian oil.
Amid such changing international conditions, Tuesday’s meeting can prove to be an important diplomatic initiative giving a new direction to the relations between the two countries.
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