Tariff Storm : Elephant And Dragon Unite, PM Modi-Xi Send Message To Trump
New Delhi : Mutual trust and respect must guide India-China relations, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Chinese President Xi Jinping as the two leaders met on the sidelines of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in China’s port city of Tianjin on Sunday. During the hour-long meeting, PM Modi underlined recent progress in bilateral ties, from an agreement between special representatives on the border standoff, to the resumption of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra and the restoration of direct flights between the two countries.
The interests of 2.8 billion people of both countries are linked to our cooperation. This will also pave the way for the welfare of the entire humanity,” the Prime Minister said. We are committed to taking our relations forward on the basis of mutual trust, respect and sensitivity, he added. Xi, on his part, welcomed PM Modi and called New Delhi a “vital friend” of Beijing. He stated that the two nations must handle ties “from a strategic and long-term perspective”.
China and India are two of the most civilizational countries. We are the world’s two most populous countries and part of the Global South… It is vital to be friends, a good neighbour, and the Dragon and the Elephant to come together,” the Chinese President said.
This time, the focus is on economic and strategic alignment as the two Asian powers navigate the turbulence caused by Trump’s tariff barrage. In recent days, China has unequivocally condemned the punishing 50 per cent tariffs on Indian exports, saying it “firmly stands with India” and denounced the US as a “bully”. The US and China have an uneasy tariff truce in place after Trump delayed the reinstatement of sky-high tariffs on Beijing by another 90 days amid ongoing negotiations.
Beijing was further piqued when, earlier this week, Trump threatened 200 per cent tariffs if it curbed exports of rare-earth magnets to the US. PM Modi is also scheduled to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Tianjin on Monday, the first huddle between the two leaders since the US doubled tariffs on Indian goods to 50 per cent over New Delhi’s refusal to stop buying Russian oil.
Even before Washington’s punitive tariffs, India had been cautiously warming to China as a source of investment and technology, while seeking to expand trade. Ties between the two neighbours sank to their lowest point after the deadly Galwan clashes in 2020, following years of mistrust since the Doklam standoff. Relations began to thaw only last October, when PM and Xi met at the Brics summit in Russia after a long freeze that saw them avoid each other at multilateral forums.
Read Also : Air India Flight Returns To Delhi After Fire Indication In Engine, Passengers Shifted To Another Aircraft