India and China share a 3,500 kilometre border (called Line of Actual Control), over which they fought a war in 1962. Its course remains unresolved as of now. Though the border has been largely peaceful, yet there have been occasional stand-offs between soldiers from the two Asian giants. In 2017 (June), Indian troops crossed the Sikkim border into Doklam to stop the Chinese troops from constructing a road.
However, the face-off was eased, thanks to the wise counsel which prevailed at the time. Again in 2017 (September) Indian and Chinese troops were reportedly involved in a heated exchange in eastern Ladakh near the Pangong Tso Lake. Again the face-off could not flare into a full-fledged war.
Chinese President Xi Jinping recently visited India to meet the country’s Prime Minister (Narendra Modi). The visit took place close on the heels of Pakistan PM Imran Khan’s visit to China. The informal summit between Xi and Modi in Mamallapuram – an ancient port town in Tamil Nadu State – came amid strained relations following China’s strong reaction to New Delhi’s decision to revoke the special status of India-occupied Jammu & Kashmir.
Previously, the two leaders had a meeting in the Chinese city of Wuhan in 2018. Although Beijing is not directly involved in the Kashmir conflict, rather it supports Pakistan on the issue, yet India is trying its utmost to keep China out of this dispute. China and India both are larger economies of the region. They share 17.6% of the global economy. Both countries have 84 billion dollars as bilateral trade. Despite all this, China’s unconditional support to Pakistan on the issue of Kashmir is manifestation that they will remain all-weather friends, come what may.