India says it has reached an agreement with China to "accelerate" the restoration of direct flights between the two countries.

India's official side said on Friday (June 13) that an agreement had been reached with neighboring China to "accelerate" the process of restoring direct flights between the two countries, indicating further improvement in bilateral relations. However, India has not provided a specific timeline yet.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in New Delhi stated in a statement that "both sides agreed to accelerate relevant steps for the restoration of direct flights," and both countries agreed to "take practical measures to simplify visa procedures and promote exchanges between media and think tanks."

The day before, Indian Secretary of Foreign Affairs, former ambassador to China Vijay Gokhale, met with Chinese Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Sun Weidong in India.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian expressed in Beijing that China holds a "positive attitude" towards the resumption of direct flights between China and India after five years.

Lin Jian stated at a regular press conference held in Beijing: "The resumption of direct flights between China and India is beneficial for personnel exchanges and cooperation between the two sides and is in line with the common interests of both parties."

New Delhi and Beijing first announced a principled agreement in January this year to restart air routes between the two countries.

In 2020, flights between the two countries were suspended due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent fatal conflict between the two countries' troops along the Himalayan border.

According to reports by Indian media Moneycontrol, prior to the outbreak of the pandemic, there were about 500 direct flights per month between China and India.

Currently, there are regular flights between India and Hong Kong. AFP pointed out that India and China are fierce competitors, vying for influence in South Asia.

In the conflict that occurred in February 2020 in remote areas along the 3,500-kilometer high-altitude border between the two countries, at least 20 Indian soldiers and 4 Chinese soldiers were killed.

Following this, India's relationship with the "Quadrilateral Security Dialogue" (Quad) alliance, led by the United States, became even closer. This alliance aims to counter China's growing influence in the Asia-Pacific region.

The New Delhi government has taken strict measures against Chinese enterprises, preventing them from investing in key economic sectors and banning hundreds of Chinese games and mobile applications, including TikTok.

Mutual distrust still exists between India and China.

Last October, prior to the meeting between the leaders of the two countries in Kazan, Russia, during the BRICS Summit, China and India agreed to withdraw troops from the standoff points in the disputed border area of Ladakh in the Himalayas.

In late April, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun stated at a regular press conference that according to the consensus reached by both sides, Indian pilgrims will resume their pilgrimage to sacred mountains and lakes in Tibet, China, this summer, and both sides are currently advancing relevant preparations.

Sacred mountains and lakes refer to Mount Kailash and Lake Manasarovar in Tibet, which are holy sites for Hindus and Buddhists.

Since 2020, Indian pilgrims have been prohibited from entering Tibet for pilgrimage.

Source: AFP

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1834837255504903/

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