(TibetanReview.net, Oct27’25) – China, which has for long been calling for normalising ties with India despite an ongoing border dispute, which has at times resulted in violent skirmishes, has on Oct 26 hailed the resumption of direct flight services between the two countries after a gap of five years as a “positive step” for the people of the two countries.
“Direct flights between China and India are now a reality,” Yu Jing, spokesperson of the Chinese Embassy in India, wrote on X.
Also, Chinese Deputy Consul General Qin Yong called it a ‘very important day’ for bilateral relations, marking normalisation and progress in diplomatic ties, reported economictimes.com Oct 27.
Speaking at a brief ceremony in Kolkata, Qin has highlighted the flight resumption as a positive step toward strengthening trade, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges between the two nations.
The first flight took off from Kolkata to Guangzhou at 10 pm. And the Shanghai-New Delhi route will begin operations on Nov 9, with three flights every week.
Flights between the two countries were first suspended during the Covid pandemic in early 2020 and did not restart as a result of a deadly night clash between troops from the two sides in Ladakh’s Galwan valley in the middle of that year. The development plunged relations between the two Asian giants to all-time low since 1962.
Both sides still have sizeable military assets and personnel arrayed against each other across their Tibet-border areas. At the same time, both have been steadily rebuilding relations.
Diplomatic and economic relations remained tense until Oct 2024, when the two sides reached an agreement on patrolling arrangements along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), seen as a key step in easing border tensions. The agreement also included a disengagement pact for Depsang and Demchok, the last two friction points along the Ladakh border.
In a statement earlier this month, the Indian government said the resumption of direct flights would “facilitate people-to-people contact” and help “the gradual normalisation of bilateral exchanges”, noted bbc.com Oct 27.
In August, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited China for the first time in seven years, meeting President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit. And earlier that month, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited India and discussed “de-escalation, delimitation and boundary affairs” with officials in Delhi.
In July, India also restarted issuing visas for Chinese tourists, as Beijing already has been to Indians.
In the last few months, the two sides have taken a series of measures to repair their ties, including the resumption of the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, noted telegraphindia.com Oct 24.
Ahead of the resumption of direct flight services, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told a media briefing in Beijing Oct 24 that it was the latest progress in implementing the understanding reached between the two countries.
China is willing to work with India to view and handle China-India relations from a strategic and long-term perspective, promote the continued healthy and stable development of bilateral relations, better benefit the two countries and their peoples, and make due contributions to maintaining peace and prosperity in Asia and the world, PTI news agency Oct 24 cited Guo as saying.
Meanwhile China has been continuing to build and strengthen its military presence in Tibet, with latest satellite images showing the building of new missile bases and infrastructure in western Tibet’s Ngari region, close to India’s Ladakh border.