India and China have agreed to resume joint military exercises in a meeting between the countries’ defense ministers in New Delhi, Financial Times reports.
General Liang Guanglie’s visited India, the first time by a Chinese defense minister in eight years, signifying that heated relations have cooled down. Gen. Liang met with Indian counterpart A.K. Antony to step up military exchanges and cooperation, such as anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf Aden and off the coast of Somalia, joint research and rescue exercises as well as mutual port calls by navy ships.
India-China relations took a turn for the worse following a confrontation between a Chinese warship and an Indian navy vessel leaving a Vietnamese port. The two countries were previously at war in 1962, over a disputed land border between northern India and western China. New Delhi accused China of befriending India’s neighbors such as Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Sri Lanka to contain the emerging economy.
