Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar emphasised the importance of maintaining peace along the border during discussions with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in New Delhi on Monday. He highlighted that improving relations between the two neighbouring countries depends on stability at their shared frontier.

Wang arrived in the Indian capital for a two-day visit, during which he is scheduled to participate in the 24th round of border talks with Indian National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“This (discussing border issues) is very important because the basis for any positive momentum in our ties is the ability to jointly maintain peace and tranquility in the border areas,” Jaishankar said during his opening remarks to Wang.

Jaishankar also pointed out the need for both sides to withdraw troops positioned along the disputed western Himalayan border, where tensions have remained high since a deadly clash in 2020.

The visit comes shortly before Modi is expected to travel to China for the first time in seven years to attend a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, a regional political and security bloc that includes Russia.

Tensions between the two countries began to ease in October after a key agreement was reached to reduce military friction along the Himalayan border, following talks between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Modi in Russia.

Relations had worsened significantly after the violent confrontation in 2020, which resulted in the deaths of 20 Indian soldiers and four Chinese troops.