China Seeks To Resume Direct Flights With India As Tensions Ease

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the country wants to restore direct flights with India, as tensions between the two Asian neighbors dial down following a four-year impasse on border disputes. 

“We should strive to make tangible progress on the resumption of direct flights, dispatching of journalists, and facilitation of visa as soon as possible,” Wang said in a meeting with his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar in Rio de Janeiro on Monday, according to a readout from China’s foreign ministry. Both officials are accompanying their national leaders there for the Group of 20 Summit. 

Wang’s comments underscore the latest effort at normalizing bilateral ties, which were strained from a four-year stalemate over the disputed Himalayan border. Skirmishes in June 2020 left 20 Indian soldiers and an unknown number of Chinese soldiers dead, leading to military buildup along the border, suspension of direct flights, and slower visa approvals. 

Tensions started easing as China’s President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in October held their first meeting in two years, shortly after both countries struck a deal to end the border impasse.  

As two major developing nations neighboring each other, “China’s and India’s common interests far outweigh their differences,” Wang told Jaishankar. “The two sides should see each other’s development as an opportunity.”