Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal signaled scope for renewed economic ties with Beijing, contingent on fairness and stability. The MEA confirmed ongoing high-level talks, while EAM S Jaishankar stressed border peace is essential for normal relations.
The Ministry of External Affairs on Wednesday reflected on the series of high-level diplomatic interactions already underway between India and China, as Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal’s signalled scope for rebuilding economic ties with Beijing.
When asked about potential plans for bilateral meetings and the scope of closer cooperation envisioned by Goyal’s comments, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal emphasised that the diplomatic channel has seen continuous dialogue over the past year. “On India-China relations, we have had a series of meetings over the last year or so,” Jaiswal stated during the media briefing. Highlighting recent high-level diplomatic contact, he added, “We had a summit-level meeting when President Xi was here for the BRICS Summit; he met with our Prime Minister.”
Piyush Goyal on Rebuilding Economic Ties
“We have continued to keep you informed of the developments in this relationship, and we will continue to do so as we go ahead,” he added. His remarks come as Piyush Goyal said that India is open to business engagements with countries across the world, including China, provided the terms are fair, and the geopolitical situation remains stable, signalling scope for renewed economic engagement with Beijing.
Speaking at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum, “We are open to all countries around the world as long as we get a fair deal, as long as we are ensured continuity in the engagement, and as long as the geopolitical situation does not deteriorate,” Goyal said during a panel discussion on supply-chain resilience and technology partnerships. “We are working to develop the relation with China once again, but the last word has not yet been scripted on this journey,” he added.
Border Peace a Prerequisite for Normalcy
Meanwhile, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said peace and tranquillity in the border areas were essential to normalising India-China relations, stressing that any disturbance along the border would have consequences.
Speaking in a conversation with John Micklethwait, Editor-in-Chief of the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Delhi, Jaishankar said India and China have no agreed border and that the issue has persisted for decades. “We don’t have an agreed border between India and China. This is not a new issue; it’s been going on for multiple decades… From 1975 till 2020, a good 45 years, no blood was shed on that border. The last time there were fatalities was in 1975. In this period, India-China relations did grow,” he said.
Emphasising India’s position on normalising ties with China, Jaishankar said the boundary situation had to remain stable for broader bilateral relations to progress. “The point we make to the Chinese is: ‘If you want a normal relationship, if the rest of the relationship is to move, it’s common sense. It’s a no-brainer that the boundary has to be stable, that we need peace and tranquillity in the border areas.’ As the border areas are settling down, they have settled down to a great extent since 2024; the relationship is commensurately moving towards normalcy,” he said.
Investment and Market Access Policies
On whether India would consider allowing greater Chinese investment if an early harvest agreement were reached, the External Affairs Minister said discussions on the possibilities were ongoing, while clarifying that investment and market access policies would be addressed separately from the boundary issue. (ANI)
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