Sino-Indian Relations

Sino-Indian relations, also called Indo-China relations, refers to the bilateral relationship between the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the Republic of India. Relations began in 1950 when India was among the first countries to break relations with the Republic of China on Taiwan and recognize the PRC. China and India are the world's most populous countries and also fastest growing major economies. The resultant growth in China and India's global diplomatic and economic influence has also increased the significance of their bilateral relationship.

China and India are two of the world’s oldest civilizations and have coexisted in peace for millennia. Cultural and economic relations between China and India date back to ancient times. The Silk Road not only served as a major trade route between India and China, but is also credited for facilitating the spread of Buddhism from India to East Asia. During the 19th century, China's growing opium trade with the British Raj triggered the Opium Wars. During World War II, India and China played a crucial role in halting the progress of Imperial Japan.

Relations between contemporary China and India have been characterized by border disputes, resulting in three major military conflicts — the Sino-Indian War of 1962, the Chola incident in 1967, and the 1987 Sino-Indian skirmish. However, since late 1980s, both countries have successfully attempted to reignite diplomatic and economic ties. In 2008, China emerged as the largest trading partner of India and the two countries have also attempted to extend their strategic and military relations.

Despite growing economic and strategic ties, several issues continue to strain Sino-Indian relations. Though bilateral trade has continuously grown, India faces massive trade imbalance heavily in favor of China. The two countries have failed to resolve their long-standing border dispute and Indian media outlets repeatedly report Chinese military incursions into Indian territory. Both nations have steadily built-up military infrastructure along border areas. Additionally, India harbors suspicions about China's strong strategic relations with its arch-rival Pakistan while China has expressed concerns about Indian military and economic activities in disputed South China Sea.

Recently, China has said that "Sino-Indian ties" would be the most "important bilateral partnership of the century". On June 21, 2012, Wen Jiabao, the Premier of China and Manmohan Singh, the Prime Minister of India set a goal to increase bilateral trade between the two countries to 100 billion dollars by 2015