Trade agreement can contribute to ‘better’ India-US ties: EAM Jaishankar

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar stated that India-China ties are currently better than they were a couple of years ago, as the border issues are being resolved and the relationship is returning to normalcy. The recent upswing in relations can be attributed to the recent visit of President Xi Jinping to India for the BRICS Leaders Summit.

Jaishankar emphasized that while trade continues, the improvement in ties is not a structural change, but rather the result of stabilizing the situation after the 2020 border standoff, which had significantly impacted the relationship. Both nations had halted all normal contacts following the standoff, but once it was resolved, it was natural for the relationship to improve.

Jaishankar also highlighted the importance of statecraft in avoiding getting locked into a problem that benefits others, and maintaining a principle that the state of the border determines the state of the relationship.