NEW DELHI: India is not ready to offer big concessions to China on trade and investment until there is greater assurance on peace and stability along the border despite recent high-level economic engagement between the two countries during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit for the BRICS Summit, sources said.
The position assumes significance following the meeting between Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and his Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in New Delhi earlier this month to resolve long-pending concerns on both sides.
“While the meeting marked a resumption of high-level trade talks, India is not looking at moving ahead on market-access or investment concessions without progress on its concerns relating to the border,” a source tracking the matter told businessline.
Xi visited India this month after seven years as ties had soured following the 2020 Galwan Valley clash leading to prolonged tensions along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). The visit, on September 12, came amid renewed efforts by India and China to ease tensions, although recent disputes over alleged Chinese encroachment have reinforced India’s priority of maintaining peace and stability along the border.
At the meeting between the two trade ministers, India raised China’s restrictions on exports of rare earth minerals and high-technology products, besides flagging the large and widening trade deficit. “Beijing did not provide specific assurances on these issues”, another official said.
While bilateral trade between India and China touched a record $151 billion in FY26, the balance remains heavily skewed in China’s favour, with imports from China into India at $131.6 billion.
China, meanwhile, raised India’s restrictions on investments from Chinese companies and sought greater liberalisation of the investment regime, the official added. FDI from countries sharing land border with India, including China, require prior government permission, which could take a long time.
“Although some concessions were made for investments coming in from border countries including China earlier this year, it was nominal and Beijing wants the investment restrictions to be totally removed. But there is not much scope for anything substantial happening now till Beijing contributes to improving the border situation,”the first source said.
At their bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Chinese President Xi Jinping that “peace and tranquillity” in the border areas remained an “essential basis” for the continued development of bilateral relations. He also stressed the need to observe existing agreements and understandings on border-related issues.
Xi, on the other hand, called for the two countries to take a strategic and long-term view of their relationship, cooperate for common development and advance bilateral relations alongside efforts to resolve the boundary question. China’s readout called for “parallel, mutually reinforcing progress” on the two fronts.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
