Building strong bilateral foundations

Leaders in India and China are stressing greater government communication, more exchanges and business cooperation

Notwithstanding the unresolved border issue, India and China appear to be making good progress in improving their mutual understanding. People-to-people communications as well as diplomacy have been steadily increasing for some time now. An excellent example of the greater people-to-people exchanges is the more than 700 per cent growth in the number of Chinese tourists to India over the last decade.

The reciprocal visits of the heads of states and senior government leaders from both countries have also been on a high trajectory. The latest will be the forthcoming visit to India by Chinese President Xi Jinping, which is due to be followed by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's trip to China during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in November.

There is considerable enthusiasm among Indian leaders, policymakers, as well as ordinary people over President Xi's first visit to the country since he took office in March last year. The visit is expected to be of considerable strategic significance for both sides.

With maritime disputes threatening regional peace, reaching out to neighbors is a strategic priority for China. The frequent standoffs with Japan over the Diaoyu Islands have further complicated regional dynamics, and they are partly responsible for prompting China to build relations with countries beyond its immediate neighborhood in Southeast and Northeast Asia.

The new Chinese leadership's major-nation initiative is geared toward winning new partners and friends. India figures prominently in the initiative as a neighbor holding much promise. Apart from having strong historical and cultural links, China and India continue to engage each other in major regional projects such as the BCIM - Bangladesh, China, India, Myanmar - Corridor. China has also invited India to join its Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road initiatives, which are ambitious plans to enhance global connectivity.

The Chinese leadership's engagement of India has been matched by equal sincerity on the part of the new government in India. The new Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, occasionally referred to as "India's Nixon" by the Chinese media, is widely seen as a leader capable of transforming India into a major global economic power in the future. This works well with China's plans to include India in its regional policy. Modi's affirmation that his government attaches "great importance to India-China relations" has helped matters. And both countries have stepped up their public diplomacy.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi was one of the earliest senior foreign officials to visit New Delhi, within three weeks of Modi assuming office. The countries' two leaders met on the sidelines of the last BRICS Summit in Brazil in July. Xi's invitation for Modi to visit China during the APEC meeting in November emphasizes the desire of both countries to work together in various global and regional forums such as the G20, BRICS and APEC.

India is also an observer in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, a China-led initiative that includes four Central Asian countries - Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan - and Russia. China has urged India to deepen its participation in the initiative. Cooperation in these various initiatives underlines the keenness of both leaderships to engage each other and work together.

The growing mutual engagement has been helped by the fact that the new Indian prime minister is no stranger to China and the Chinese leadership. Modi visited China several times as the chief minister of Gujarat and actively sought Chinese investment and expertise for the development of the state. Chinese investments of around $900 million are located in Gujarat alone. India's recent policy of opening-up its domestic railway development to foreign investment is expected to attract more Chinese capital in India. Chinese investments are also expected to flow into large industrial parks.

The sincere efforts on the part of both leaderships to engage and collaborate co-exist with media reports on movements by armed forces of both sides around the border. These reports only serve to negatively affect public perceptions. Regional actors having strained ties with China are also keen on seeing India play a strategically counterbalancing role. Vietnam's decision to offer India five additional oil and gas blocks in the South China Sea for exploration during Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj's visit to Hanoi this month is an example.

Similar examples are found in South Asia when Pakistan and Bangladesh repeatedly refer to close ties with China in veiled efforts to irk India. Both countries need to ignore efforts by others to create misunderstanding and strategic mistrust.

The author, based in Singapore, is an independent scholar specializing in international relations. She is also a research associate at the China in Comparative Perspective Network (CCPN) Global - a UK-based academic society. psinhapalit@gmail.com