India, China should firmly oppose any form of tariff, trade wars: Chinese envoy

New Delhi: China and India should firmly oppose hegemony, power politics and any form of tariff and trade wars, Chinese ambassador Xu Feihong said on Tuesday amid New Delhi's frosty ties with the Trump administration after it doubled the levies on Indian goods to 50 per cent.

In an address at an event, the envoy proposed a four-point approach to advance relations between India and China that included finding the "right way" to get along with each other in the spirit of mutual respect and trust.

Xu said the two countries should not allow the boundary question to define the current China-India relations and that bilateral trade should be expanded as it has "great potential".

The envoy's remarks came more than three weeks after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in China's Tianjin city.

In the last few months, both sides have initiated a series of measures to reset their ties that came under severe strain following the deadly clashes between Indian and Chinese troops in the Galwan valley in June 2020.

In his speech at the event that celebrated the 76th anniversary of the founding of China, Xu said it is important that China and India "firmly oppose hegemony, power politics and any form of tariff and trade wars", and jointly defend the common interests of the Global South and build a community with a shared future for humanity.

Referring to the Modi-Xi talks in Tianjin, the envoy said China is ready to work with the Indian side to follow the "guidance of the important common understandings between our two leaders, and advance China-India relations on the track of sound and stable development".

"As two major ancient civilisations and large developing countries, the relationship between China and India has transcended bilateral scope and bears global and strategic significance," he said.

"The two sides should aim high, plan for the long term and find the right way to get along with each other in the spirit of mutual respect and trust, peaceful coexistence, common development and win-win cooperation," he added.

Xu said the China-India economic and trade cooperation continues to expand and has great potential.

"From January to August this year, bilateral trade in goods grew 10.4 per cent year-on-year to USD 102 billion," he said, adding that China is ready to work with India to strengthen the mutually-beneficial cooperation in various fields and make a "bigger pie" of common interests.

"By September 22, the Chinese embassy and consulates in India issued over 2,65,000 visas to Indian citizens. We are ready to advance friendly exchanges with India at all levels and in all sectors, and further deepen mutual understanding and friendship," he said.

Bridging differences through dialogue has always been key to advancing China-India relations, he said.

"We should carry forward the five principles of peaceful coexistence, and truly respect each other's core interests and major concerns. We should not allow the boundary question that was left over from the past to define the current China-India relations, nor let specific differences affect the comprehensive bilateral cooperation," he added.

During their meeting in Tianjin, Modi and Xi appeared to display a tactical embrace focussing on boosting economic ties at a time India is going through possibly the worst phase in its relations with the United States, with the strain exacerbated by President Donald Trump's tariff policy.