New Delhi, June 11: In a significant diplomatic development, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong is expected to visit India later this week to hold high-level talks with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. The focus of the discussions will be the long-standing border standoff in Eastern Ladakh, which has strained ties between the two nuclear-armed neighbours since 2020.
This will be the second high-level interaction between India and China in 2025 and comes amid efforts to revive dialogue over the pending disengagement in several friction points along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
Disengagement Talks Back on Track
According to official sources, the agenda of the meeting will center around unresolved military stand-off areas such as Depsang Plains, Demchok, and Hot Springs, where both sides have maintained forward deployments despite multiple rounds of military and diplomatic negotiations. The visit by Sun Weidong is being seen as a renewed effort from Beijing to re-engage India at a time when global attention remains focused on rising tensions across Asia.
Sun Weidong, a seasoned diplomat and former Chinese Ambassador to India, is well-versed in the complexities of India-China relations. His visit signals China’s willingness to push forward on the disengagement process and improve bilateral ties, albeit under a carefully calibrated framework.
The India-China border standoff, which escalated in May 2020, led to the deadly Galwan Valley clash that left casualties on both sides. Since then, several rounds of Corps Commander-level and Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) meetings have led to partial disengagement in select areas like Pangong Tso and Gogra, but a full resolution remains elusive.
NSA Ajit Doval has consistently emphasized that peace and tranquillity along the border is a prerequisite for normalization of the overall relationship. India has also expressed concerns over China’s rapid infrastructure development near the LAC, including new roads, military facilities, and civilian settlements close to Indian territory.
The timing of Sun Weidong’s visit carries considerable geopolitical weight. It comes as both nations recalibrate their foreign policy strategies amidst shifting global dynamics, including heightened U.S.-China rivalry, Indo-Pacific militarization, and ongoing instability in Eurasia.
India, while maintaining engagement with China, has significantly strengthened its strategic ties with the United States, Japan, Australia, and ASEAN countries. Joint military exercises such as Yudh Abhyas, regular naval patrols, and defense tech cooperation have further expanded India’s role in regional security architecture—something Beijing continues to view with suspicion.
However, both New Delhi and Beijing are aware that unresolved tensions at the border could derail economic cooperation and regional peace. Bilateral trade between the two countries remains strong, crossing $135 billion in 2024, but the political relationship remains brittle.
While a major breakthrough is not guaranteed, the upcoming meeting could set the stage for:
• Further military disengagement agreements in Eastern Ladakh
• A roadmap for the resumption of normal diplomatic exchanges
• Strengthening of confidence-building measures (CBMs) at the LAC
• Dialogue on border peace protocols signed in the 1990s
• Potential economic and people-to-people initiatives, if progress is made
Both sides are expected to issue formal statements following the meeting, although much of the progress may happen behind closed doors, as has been the norm in such sensitive diplomatic engagements.
Experts believe that the visit by Sun Weidong will be closely watched not only in New Delhi and Beijing but across world capitals, as it offers a litmus test for the future of India-China relations. The outcome may shape how Asia’s two biggest powers manage their rivalry—through diplomacy or prolonged confrontation.
If the talks succeed, it could pave the way for restoring trust, reopening stalled dialogues, and reactivating bilateral mechanisms on trade, culture, and security. On the other hand, failure to resolve border differences could prolong the “no war, no peace” status quo along the LAC, with significant security and economic implications.
