New Delhi [India], January 27 : The visit of Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri to China from January 26 to 27 saw several notable developments take place in the India-China ties, with the resumption of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra from this summer and an agreement to hold an early meeting of the India-China Expert Level Mechanism to discuss cooperation on trans-border rivers. The two countries decided to resume direct air connectivity, with these leading developments coming ahead of 2025 being the 75th year of the establishment of diplomatic ties between India and China. The Foreign Secretary also called upon the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and the Minister of the International Department of the Communist Party of China Liu Jianchao, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) announced on Monday.
In a statement by the MEA it was noted, "Foreign Secretary Shri Vikram Misri visited Beijing on 26-27 January for a meeting of the Foreign Secretary-Vice Foreign Minister mechanism between India and China on 27 January. As agreed between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping at their meeting in Kazan in October, the two sides reviewed the state of India-China bilateral relations comprehensively and agreed to take certain people-centric steps to stabilize and rebuild ties".
The Ministry said, "In this context, the two sides decided to resume the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra in the summer of 2025; the relevant mechanism will discuss the modalities for doing so as per existing agreements. They also agreed to hold an early meeting of the India-China Expert Level Mechanism to discuss resumption of provision of hydrological data and other cooperation pertaining to trans-border rivers".
It was noted that appropriate measures to further promote and facilitate people-to-people exchanges, including media and think-tank interactions will take place.
Another significant announcement was that the resumption of direct air services will take place between the two countries, with relevant technical authorities on the two sides meeting and negotiating an updated framework for this purpose at an early date, the MEA said.
As 2025 marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and China, the two noted that it should be utilized to redouble public diplomacy efforts to create better awareness about each other and restore mutual trust and confidence among the public. The two sides will conduct a number of commemorative activities to mark this anniversary.
Another significant announcement was that specific concerns in the economic and trade areas were discussed with a view to resolving these issues and promoting long-term policy transparency and predictability.
MEA said that during his visit to China, Foreign Secretary called on Members of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, the Director of the Office of Central Commission of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and Minister of the International Department of the Communist Party of China, Liu Jianchao.
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