India is set to resume issuing tourist visas to Chinese citizens from July 24 this year, Reuters quoted the Indian Embassy in China as saying.
Earlier this year, it was reported that India and China had agreed in principle to resume direct flights, visa issuance, and the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra for pilgrims.
This was the first step toward normalising relations that had been strained since the 2020 border clashes.
Following the announcement, India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri had visited Beijing for two days, signalling renewed diplomatic engagement between Asia’s two largest economies.
“As agreed between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping at their meeting in Kazan in October, Foreign Secretary and Chinese Vice Foreign Minister HE Mr Sun Weidong reviewed the state of India-China bilateral relations comprehensively and agreed to take certain people-centric steps to stabilise and rebuild ties,” the Ministry of External Affairs had stated in a release.
“The two sides decided to resume the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra in the summer of 2025,” it added.
“They also agreed to hold an early meeting of the India-China Expert Level Mechanism to discuss the resumption of the provision of hydrological data and other cooperation pertaining to trans-border rivers,” the release in January had stated.
Earlier this week, External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing and discussed the trajectory of India-China bilateral relations.
The interaction took place as part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Foreign Ministers’ call on the Chinese President.
During the talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, EAM Jaishankar emphasised a long-term approach to resolving bilateral issues.
“Incumbent on us to address aspects related to the border, normalising people-to-people exchanges and avoiding restrictive trade measures and roadblocks,” EAM Jaishankar posted on X after the meeting.
“Confident that on the foundation of mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual sensitivity, ties can develop along a positive trajectory,” he mentioned.
