Context:

• At the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin, Prime Minister Narendra Modi joined President Xi Jinping and leaders from 23 countries and 10 international organisations.
• Marking the largest SCO gathering since its inception 24 years ago, the summit highlighted solidarity, friendship, and cooperation, aiming to advance the organisation into a new phase of high-quality development.
• This article highlights the outcomes of the Tianjin SCO Summit, the 75th anniversary of China-India diplomatic ties, and the shared vision of both nations in shaping global governance and regional cooperation.

Tianjin SCO Summit Yields Key Outcomes

• The SCO Tianjin Summit produced significant results, including the creation of four security centres and the decision to establish an SCO Development Bank.
• Leaders endorsed a new decade-long development strategy and pledged support for multilateral trading and global peace.
• President Xi announced major cooperation platforms in energy, green industry, and the digital economy, alongside centres for innovation, higher education, and vocational training.
• Highlighting his Global Governance Initiative, Xi called for equality, rule of law, and people-centered multilateralism.
• Since joining in 2017, India has played a vital role in SCO, with China acknowledging Prime Minister Modi’s support and seeking deeper collaboration in security, finance, and sustainable development.

75 Years of China-India Diplomatic Ties

• As India and China mark the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping reaffirmed their commitment to partnership, emphasizing that the two nations are partners, not rivals.
• Both leaders agreed that cooperation outweighs differences.
• Xi urged India and China to be good-neighbourly partners, symbolised as the “dragon and elephant dancing together.”
• Modi echoed this, calling for a long-term perspective in developing ties.

Pathways for Strengthening Relations

• Consolidating Strategic Trust - Both countries must learn from the past, build mutual respect and trust, and gradually resume dialogue mechanisms between governments to ensure peaceful coexistence and common development.
• Expanding Exchanges and Cooperation - Development should remain the central focus.
  • China expressed readiness to work with India in areas like technology, education, culture, tourism, and poverty alleviation, while also enhancing people-to-people exchanges across political, academic, media, and youth platforms.
• Enhancing Good-Neighbourliness - The two sides should uphold the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, respect each other’s core concerns, and not let the unresolved boundary issue define bilateral relations. Instead, cooperation should ensure stability and mutual growth.
• The diamond jubilee of ties marks a renewed effort to build trust, deepen cooperation, and strengthen friendship between India and China, laying the foundation for more stable and constructive relations.

China and India’s Shared Global Role

• As leading members of the Global South, India and China share interests in development, peace, and global governance.
• With both nations set to hold successive BRICS presidencies, China expressed readiness to work with India to strengthen cooperation, implement the Global Governance Initiative, oppose hegemony, uphold fairness and justice, and build a shared future for humanity.

Conclusion

• India and China, through the SCO platform and their bilateral ties, aim to strengthen cooperation, uphold fairness, and jointly build a stable and inclusive global order.