The much-anticipated meeting between Xi and Modi took place on Sunday, alongside a regional summit in the eastern port city of Tianjin. Both countries confront significant US tariffs due to President Donald Trump’s international trade conflicts, as well as facing scrutiny from the West over their ties with Russia amidst the ongoing war in Ukraine.

“The world today is undergoing transformation unprecedented in a century,” Xi remarked to Modi during their opening dialogue, as both leaders sat opposite each other, accompanied by their officials. He further stated, “The global situation is both dynamic and disorderly.”

Recently, the two nations have agreed to resume direct flights that were halted due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Furthermore, Beijing has permitted the reopening of two pilgrimage sites in western Tibet for Indian visitors after five years, and both countries have commenced re-issuing tourist visas for each other’s citizens.

Earlier this month, following a visit by China’s senior diplomat Wang Yi to New Delhi, the two countries revealed “ten points of consensus” to further alleviate tensions.

On Sunday, during their discussions, Xi and Modi addressed “developments on the international stage and the challenges they present,” according to India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, who briefed reporters on the SCO sidelines regarding whether Trump’s tariffs were discussed.

“They tried to, in a sense, see how to leverage that for building greater understanding between themselves, and how to … take forward the economic and commercial relationship between India and China in the midst of these evolving challenges,” Misri said.

Observers say, however, that even as the two leaders seek stability in their relationship, both in terms of trade and security, it will be hard for Xi and Modi to overcome a longstanding lack of personal trust.

Underlying tensions between India and China spiked in 2020 following a deadly conflict along their disputed Himalayan border, in which 20 Indian and four Chinese soldiers were killed in hand-to-hand combat.

The two nations maintain a heavy military presence along their 3379-kilometre de facto border, known as the Line of Actual Control (LAC) – a boundary that remains undefined and has been a persistent source of friction since their bloody 1962 war.

But both leaders on Sunday appeared keen to signal the welcome of a warmer chapter.

An Indian readout released following the meeting said they reaffirmed that “their differences should not turn into disputes” and their “stable relationship and cooperation” was necessary for the “growth and development of the two countries, as well as for a multipolar world.”