Modi says close China-India ties crucial for a multipolar Asia and world

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday signalled a further warming of ties with Beijing, urging the two Asian giants to collaborate in shaping a multipolar world, even as New Delhi remains wary of China’s growing military might and tries to finesse its own recent estrangement from the White House.

“Stable, predictable and amicable bilateral relations between India and China, the two largest nations on Earth, can have a positive impact on regional and global peace and prosperity,” he told the Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan’s largest newspaper, in an interview.

“This is also crucial for a multipolar Asia and world”, added the Hindu nationalist leader of the world’s most populous country during a two-day visit to Japan, from August 29-30.

Modi will be travelling to Tianjin, China, from August 31 to September 1 to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit, where he will meet with President Xi Jinping. Political leaders from Pakistan, Iran, North Korea and Russia will also participate in the SCO. However, while they will be present at China’s military parade in Beijing next week, Modi will not be joining them.

Beijing’s friendly relations with Pakistan have been a key cause of mutual mistrust with India, along with the decades-old contentious India-China border issue. During the four-day India-Pakistan military conflict in May, Chinese-made Pakistani fighter jets were used to down at least five Indian jets, according to Islamabad.

Chinese President Xi Jinping (right) and India Prime Minister Narendra Modi meet on the sidelines of the Brics summit last October in Kazan, Russia.

The warming India-China ties stand in contrast to its bid in recent years to position itself as a counterweight to China in the Indo-Pacific and seek deeper ties with Washington and its allies in the strategically vital region.

South China Morning Post