India and China resume direct flights after five years

ByEnigma 808

India and China will resume direct commercial flights on Sunday, ending a five-year hiatus. The move signals improving ties between the Asian powers following a 2020 border clash that killed at least 20 Indian and four Chinese troops.

IndiGo will launch the first daily route from Kolkata to Guangzhou at 10 p.m. local time on Sunday. Additional connections from New Delhi to Shanghai and Guangzhou begin in November. The governments suspended roughly 500 flights per month between the nations after the pandemic began.

India imported more than $11 billion in Chinese goods last month, up 16 percent from September 2024. Indian exports to China reached $1.47 billion, climbing 34 percent from the previous year. New Delhi maintains a substantial trade deficit with Beijing despite restrictions on Chinese investments and hundreds of banned apps.

The warming relationship comes as tensions rise between India and Washington over 50 percent American tariffs. The countries remain strategic competitors with troops stationed along their 3,500-kilometer contested border.

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    Besides writing and being a content creator, Enigma 808 sometimes likes to watch paint dry on walls, listening to ASMR while timing snails racing. Such is life.