Finance
Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with Politburo Standing Committee member Cai Qi in Tianjin on Sunday. The two leaders talked on a variety of political and economic topics, including the expansion of India-China people-to-people interactions.
In a post on X, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated, “PM Narendra Modi met Politburo Standing Committee Member Mr. Cai Qi in Tianjin, China. Building on, and in line with, the leaders’ meeting today, they touched on bilateral economic, political and people-to-people exchanges between India and China.”
During the meeting, Cai reiterated China’s desire to expand bilateral exchanges and further improve ties in line with the consensus reached between the two leaders.
In a press release, MEA stated, “Prime Minister also had a meeting with Mr. Cai Qi, Member of the Standing Committee of the Politburo of the Communist Party of China. Prime Minister shared with Mr. Cai his vision for bilateral relations and sought his support to realize the vision of the two leaders. Mr. Cai reiterated the Chinese side’s desire to expand bilateral exchanges and further improve relations in line with the consensus reached between the two leaders.”
PM Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping met earlier in the day on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in Tianjin, where they decided to further advance people-to-people interactions between the two countries.
The two leaders discussed the development of India-China relations since their 2024 encounter in Kazan, Russia. They reiterated that their disagreements should not become confrontations and that the two nations were development partners rather than adversaries.
“PM Narendra Modi met President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the SCO Summit in Tianjin, China. The two leaders reviewed the progress of India-China bilateral relations since their meeting in Kazan last year. Stable and amicable ties between India and China are important for our economic growth, for reformed multilateralism and for a multipolar world and Asia. Supported the work of the two SRs on the boundary question. Agreed to further promote people to people exchanges. Predictable economic and trade cooperation between India and China helps stabilize world economy,” Jaiswal posted on X.
According to a press release from the MEA, PM Modi emphasized the need of maintaining peace and calm along the border for the ongoing growth of bilateral relations. Building on the commencement of the Kailash Manasarovar Yatra and tourist visas, the two leaders acknowledged the need to improve people-to-people relations by facilitating direct flights and visas.
Regarding economic and trade relations, both PM Modi and Xi Jinping acknowledged the importance of their respective economies in maintaining global trade stability. In order to increase bilateral trade and investment links and lower the trade deficit, they emphasized the necessity of moving forward from a political and strategic standpoint.
The Prime Minister added that China and India both seek strategic autonomy and that their relationship shouldn’t be viewed through the prism of a third country, according to the MEA. Expanding common ground on bilateral, regional, and global issues and challenges, such as terrorism and fair trade in multilateral platforms, was considered vital by the two presidents.
PM Modi stated his support for the Tianjin Summit and China’s SCO Presidency. Additionally, he extended an invitation to President Xi to attend the BRICS Summit, which India will host in 2026. In addition to offering China’s support for India’s BRICS Presidency, Xi Jinping thanked PM Modi for the invitation.
Source: IANS
