News Digest

In India, Xi Jinping gets first public welcome for Chinese leader in 60 years

Chinese President Xi Jinping has become the first Chinese leader in six decades to be feted at a civic reception, during an historic visit to Indiaa that aims to boost commercial ties between the two Asian giants. India’s new Prime Minister Narendra Modi is eager to secure Chinese funding to fulfil his election pledge to overhaul India’s crumbling infrastructure, while China wants to foster warmer ties with its western neighbour at a time of heightened tensions with Japan and several Southeast Asian nations over disputed sea territory. But border disputes - China claims the whole of the state of Arunachal Pradesh - and the legacy of a brief war in 1962 between the two countries remain a sticking point.

China-India relations have become one of the most dynamic and promising bilateral relations in the 21st century.

Chinese President Xi Jinping

China’s close ties with Pakistan and growing influence in India’s backyard are another source of tension. The presence in India of the Dalai Lama, Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader, is another source of tension between the two countries. On the economic front, China is India’s largest trading partner, with two-way trade at about $66 billion last year. However, $51 billion of that came from Chinese exports. India hopes new investments from China will partly help offset its trade deficit. China also plans to invest about $7 billion in two industrial parks in western India.