Beijing is prepared to settle its long-simmering border disputes with India, according to statements made by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in New Delhi on June 9.

“[W]e have come to an agreement on the basics of a boundary agreement, and we are prepared to reach a final settlement,” Wang said during a visit that included a meeting with India’s newly elected prime minister, Narendra Modi.

India and China have a long history of border strife dating back to the 1950s shortly after China annexed Tibet. The tensions culminated in the violent conflict of 1962, which resulted in a humiliating defeat for the Indian Army. Although India-China relations normalized in the 1980s, disagreements over their shared border have remained a source of tension.

As recently as last year, the dispute flared up once again when the government of India accused Chinese soldiers of crossing into Indian-held territory in Ladakh. Tensions remained acute for three weeks until army commanders on both sides negotiated an agreement. Despite the abatement, India still accuses China of occupying some 15,000 square miles of its territory on the Aksai Chin plateau in the western Himalayas. China says it owns about 35,000 square miles in the territory of the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh.

Based on Wang’s statements on Monday, though, it appears that the decades-old disputes are near an end. This would represent a massive win for Modi and for Chinese President Xi Jinping, as it would swing open the gates to unprecedented Sino-Indian cooperation.

https://twitter.com/AFP/status/336436579960758273

Together, India and China are home to a third of the world’s population. China is already India’s largest trade partner, with combined commerce between the two exceeding $49 billion in the April-December period of last year. They are keen on boosting cooperation to new heights.

“China-India cooperation is like a massive buried treasure waiting to be discovered,” Wang said. “The potential is massive. … We regard each other as a priority and each other’s development as an opportunity.”

Since Modi’s worldview is shaped by Asian nationalism rather than the westward leanings of his predecessors, many analysts believe he will be instrumental in unlocking the “buried treasure.” Speaking to theTrumpet.com on June 11, Prince Azariah, a Mumbai resident and the former cio of acc Limited, explained the priorities of India’s new leader:

Modi has clearly indicated that his priority in foreign policy is to improve relations and business climate with the neighborhood countries. He is showing this by making friendly moves with Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Bangladesh. India always had a great relationship with the Soviet Union (now Russia). … Japan and India are very close …. The big gap has been in the relationship with China, and Modi is out to change that.

Modi has demonstrated his intent to make that change by extending an invitation to Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit India, working toward boosting Chinese investment in India, moving to ease visa rules for Chinese tourism in India, and now by settling India’s long-simmering border disputes with China.

“The morning newspapers are reporting on a daily basis of how this [China-India] alliance is shaping, primarily in the area of currency exchange, visit visas and cultural exchanges,” Azariah said. “Things are moving fast, very fast.”

This fast-moving cooperation between Beijing and Delhi is part of a great geopolitical shift now underway. To understand the significance of it, read “Results of Largest Election in Human History Mean India-Russia-China Ties Will Advance.”