Beijing, Sep 14 — China and India should translate the understandings reached at the recent meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi into concrete action, the country’s biggest English language newspaper 'China Daily' opined after the conclusion of the BRICS Summit in New Delhi on Sunday.
It noted that while addressing their differences through dialogue and negotiation, the two countries should explore fresh avenues of cooperation and generate positive momentum for long-term good-neighbourly coexistence.
“The meeting between President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday on the sidelines of the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi underscored the importance of partnership and development, setting a pragmatic trajectory for Sino-Indian relations. The two leaders emphasized the strategic importance of the relationship and stressed that the hard-won stability of ties illustrates the potential for further collaboration,” an editorial in ‘China Daily’ detailed.
“Both countries can draw on each other's strengths to pursue common development, supporting one another and helping each other succeed,” it added.
According to the state-owned daily, a mouthpiece for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), meetings between Xi and PM Modi in recent years have played a key role in stabilising ties and preventing differences from impacting the overall relationship.
Citing data from China’s General Administration of Customs, it said bilateral goods trade grew 12.4 per cent year-on-year to a record $155.6 billion in 2025.
“China has re-emerged as India's largest trading partner in the 2025-26 Indian fiscal year. Their economies are also intertwined: Chinese industrial supplies underpin India's manufacturing, while India offers a vast market for Chinese goods," the newspaper noted.
Stressing the importance of preventing the India-China relationship from drifting or being overshadowed by mistrust and strategic rivalry, it said, “How their bilateral ties evolve not only has a direct bearing on the well-being of the more than 2.8 billion people in the two countries, but also helps to shape the geopolitical situation of the region and beyond. Against the complex international landscape characterised by rising unilateralism and bloc confrontation, steady and constructive interaction between China and India is particularly valuable and necessary.”
It mentioned that in recent years, external forces have repeatedly attempted to fuel geopolitical rivalry by creating divisions between Asian countries, including China and India.
Against this backdrop, it said, Prime Minister Modi’s statement that “China-India relations leave no room for manipulation by external geopolitical agendas and India is willing to be a partner rather than a rival to China is conducive to strengthening mutual trust, eliminating disturbances and safeguarding the positive atmosphere for bilateral engagement.”
Xi Jinping participated in the two-day BRICS Summit held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi from September 12 to 13.
During his visit to India, Xi also held a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Modi, where the two leaders emphasised that "differences should not become disputes" and reaffirmed that both countries should take a strategic and long-term perspective on their ties.
"The two leaders welcomed the steady progress in India-China bilateral relations since their last meeting in Tianjin in August 2025. They reaffirmed that both countries should take a strategic and long term perspective of their ties. Differences should not become disputes. Prime Minister highlighted that both sides must be guided by three mutuals- mutual respect, mutual sensitivity, and mutual interest," read a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) after the meeting.
During the meeting, PM Modi stressed that peace and tranquillity in the border areas remain an essential basis for the continued development of bilateral relations.