Key Points

In an interview with Japan's leading daily, The Yomiuri Shimbun, PM Modi expressed India's readiness to advance ties with China based on mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual sensitivity. He noted that India-China ties have witnessed steady and positive progress since his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Kazan last year.

When asked about the importance of improving ties with China at this time, PM Modi responded, "At the invitation of President Xi Jinping, I would be travelling to Tianjin from here to take part in the SCO Summit. Since my meeting with President Xi in Kazan last year, steady and positive progress has been made in our bilateral ties. Stable, predictable, and amicable bilateral relations between India and China, as two neighbours and the two largest nations on earth, can have a positive impact on regional and global peace and prosperity. This is also crucial for a multi-polar Asia and a multi-polar world."

He further told The Yomiuri Shimbun: "Given the current volatility in world economy, it is also important for India and China, as two major economies, to work together to bring stability to the world economic order. India is ready to advance bilateral relations from a strategic and long-term perspective on the basis of mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual sensitivity, and to enhance strategic communication to address our developmental challenges."

PM Modi's remarks come just ahead of his visit to China on Saturday for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin scheduled from August 31-September 1. In his departure statement on Thursday, PM Modi stated that he looked forward to meeting Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and other leaders on the sidelines of the SCO Summit.

"From Japan, I will travel to China to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit in Tianjin, at the invitation of President Xi Jinping. India is an active and constructive member of SCO. During our Presidency, we have introduced new ideas and initiated collaboration in the fields of innovation, health and cultural exchanges. India remains committed to working with the SCO members to address shared challenges and deepen regional cooperation. I also look forward to meeting President Xi Jinping, President Putin and other leaders on the sidelines of the Summit," said PM Modi on Thursday.

This will be PM Modi's first visit to China since 2018 and the first since the violent Galwan Valley faceoff in June 2020 between the soldiers of the two countries at the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

PM Modi, Xi Jinping held a meeting on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Russia's Kazan in 2024. The breakthrough in bilateral talks was made possible after India and China reached an agreement on patrolling along the nearly 3500-km LAC to end the four-year-long border confrontation.

On August 21, China's Ambassador to India Xu Feihong asserted that PM Modi's visit to Tianjin for SCO Summit will give a fresh impetus to the improvement and development of relations between both countries.

"The visit of Prime Minister Modi to China will be a very important event not only for the SCO but for the bilateral relationship between the two countries. A working group from China and India is working very hard to make this visit a successful one. From our side, we attach great importance to this visit. It will be a very successful one," Xu Feihong told reporters on the sidelines of an event in New Delhi.

On August 19, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had called on PM Modi in New Delhi, handing over a message and invitation from President Xi Jinping to the PM for the two-day SCO Summit.

"Glad to meet Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Since my meeting with President Xi in Kazan last year, India-China relations have made steady progress guided by respect for each other's interests and sensitivities. I look forward to our next meeting in Tianjin on the sidelines of the SCO Summit. Stable, predictable, constructive ties between India and China will contribute significantly to regional as well as global peace and prosperity," PM Modi posted on X after the meeting.

During the meeting, PM Modi emphasised the importance of maintaining peace and tranquillity on the border, and reiterated India's commitment to a fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable resolution of the boundary question.

"Prime Minister welcomed the steady and positive progress in bilateral ties since his meeting with President Xi in Kazan last year, guided by mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual sensitivity, including the resumption of the Kailash Manasarovar Yatra," read a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO)

"Prime Minister thanked President Xi for the invitation to the SCO Summit and conveyed his acceptance. He expressed support for China's Presidency of the SCO Summit and said that he looked forward to meeting President Xi in Tianjin. The PM underlined that stable, predictable, and constructive ties between India and China will contribute significantly to regional and global peace and prosperity," it added.

The SCO is a permanent intergovernmental international organisation established in Shanghai on June 15, 2001. The SCO member states are: China, Russia, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Iran and Belarus. The SCO has two observer states — Afghanistan and Mongolia and 14 dialogue partners, including Turkey, Kuwait, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, Bahrain, the Maldives, Myanmar and the United Arab Emirates.

- IANS