PM Modi, President Xi discuss trade gap, joint fight against terror

NEw new delhi: communist china should act with bharat to call trade-related issues, such as a large deficit and policy predictability, and to tackle challenges such as cross-border terrorism as the two sides rebuild their relationship, foreign secretary Vikram Misri said on Sunday.Promotion of trade and investment amid challenges arising from the tariff policies of the US administration and countering terrorism figured in a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping on the margins of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin. The two leaders met to take stock of ties following the end of a military standoff on the border last year.The leaders discussed ways to increase and balance trade and the role the Indian and Chinese economies can play in stabilising world trade, Misri told a media briefing. They underlined the need to reduce the bilateral trade deficit, facilitate bilateral trade and investment ties in both directions, and “increase policy transparency and predictability”, he said.Trade remains completely skewed in China’s favour, as India’s exports during FY 2024-25 were worth only $14.25 billion while imports from China were valued at $113.5 billion. The trade deficit has expanded from $1.1 billion in 2003-04 to $99.2 billion in 2024-25. Indian officials have for long also expressed concern about lack of access to China’s markets and non-tariff barriers.“It is a fact that there is a large and ongoing trade deficit between India and China,” Misri said. Modi told Xi it is important to look at trade and the deficit in terms of the strategic engagement between the two sides. Growing bilateral trade and narrowing the deficit will “contribute to a change in perception in the relationship”, Misri said.According to Misri, Modi described cross-border terrorism as a priority since it impacts both India and China and said it is important to “extend understanding and extend support to each other” to combat terror. “We have received the understanding and cooperation of China as we have dealt with the issue of cross-border terrorism in the context of the ongoing SCO Summit,” Misri added while responding to a question on whether the Indian side had raised cross-border terrorism and China’s backing for Pakistan during military clashes with India in May.In the context of the rebuilding of bilateral relations after the face-off on the border, Misri said the two leaders agreed India and China are focused on domestic development goals and are partners, rather than rivals. There was also consensus between the leaders that a stable and amicable relationship can benefit the 2.8 billion people of the two sides as “common interests of the two countries outweigh their differences”, he said.Besides discussions on strengthening people-to-people ties and cooperation on trans-border rivers, there was focus on resuming direct flights. Misri said there had been several rounds of technical talks on this issue and a civil aviation delegation from India visited Beijing this week for further discussions.Though there is a broad consensus on restarting direct flights, certain operational issues related to the air services agreement, scheduling and calendar are yet to be finalised. “My understanding is that these will be addressed in the coming few weeks and we should see a resumption of direct flights soon after that,” he said.