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Important to deal with China confidently, stand on ground as on border: Jaishankar
He further remarked that "at a political and strategic level, both the countries had an interest in maintaining certain....stable relationship."
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Shikha Salaria - Sat, 22, Aug 2026
- 15:24 EDT
- 42
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar / IANS
It was important for India to deal with China confidently and stand our ground, just as we have stood on the border, India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar remarked while commenting on the India-China ties in the backdrop of the possibility of the Chinese President Xi Jinping arriving in India to attend the BRICS Summit scheduled to be held in September 2026.
Jaishankar was speaking at the World Leaders Forum organized by the Economic Times on Aug. 22
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Asked how he viewed the relationship between the two nations in the backdrop of the possibility of the Chinese President participating in the BRICS Summit, Jaishankar said that the two countries "went through a particularly bad patch between the summer of 2020 and the autumn of 2024 and that was primarily an outcome of the situation on the border areas. And I said it then and I continue to say it now that peace and tranquility in border areas is a prerequisite for good relations and the state of the border to a very large measure, naturally would determine the state of the relations.
"Having said that, assuming things are stable and the needle is more cooperative obviously, we are both very big economies. In many ways, we are markets to each other. We are a part of the supply chain, they industrialize much faster and much bigger and much earlier... largely because many of the policies we advocate, you heard yesterday, the production linked-punishment message that we missed from the 1960s and a good half century.... the opportunity to industrialize, the opportunity to deepen manufacturing, to develop efficiency....that's a different story...but having said that there is obviously economic interaction between us," Jaishankar remarked.
He however said that the "the purpose of that interaction was to finally modernize India's economy and to develop our capabilities."
"But even as we do so, obviously, there will be other economic interactions with them," the EAM added.
Jaishankar further remarked that "at a political and strategic level, both the countries had an interest in maintaining certain....stable relationship."
"So, here's my point, the world is competitive, we must build up our strengths. We have to do business with the entire world and that includes China too but it is important we deal with them confidently. We stand our ground as we have stood on our border. We develop our strengths which unfortunately, as I said, from the 1960s for half a century we did not do. We have to make up for the shortcomings and mistakes of the past," he said.
Jaishankar's remarks come at a time when Indian and Chinese forces have had a standoff near the Line of Actual Control in Arunachal Pradesh and when locals of the Taksing and Limeking circles of the north eastern state of India have levelled serious allegations that China has "captured" at least two strategic Indian points in the Indian territory near the LAC and that the Chinese PLA had entered almost 20-30 kms inside the Indian territory.
The EAM also addressed the issue of the problems being faced by Indian professionals travelling to China for work.
According to reports, business visa approvals for Indian professionals travelling to China have fallen significantly and it has been harder for companies to send executives, engineers and technical teams to the country.
Reacting to a question about such reports, Jaishankar said that he had seen the reports and that India had taken it up with the China side as well.
"I have seen it and I want to say that for those of you who have been affected, we have taken it up as well," he remarked.
According to a report in the Economic Times, some Indian companies are able to get only 20 percent to 40 percent of their Chinese business visa applications approved while earlier, almost all the applications used to get easy approvals.
The report states that for some companies, executives say the rejection rate has climbed as high as 95 percent.
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