India and China have agreed to resume the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, which has been suspended since 2020 due to the 💃pandemic.
This decision, along with the potential resumption of direct flights between the two nations, w🉐as finalis💜ed during a recent meeting between India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
According to a statement from India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the resumption of the Yatra is scheduled for the summer of 2025, with both countries planning to work out the necessary logistical arrangements through existing agreements. The Yatr🐠a, a sacred pilgrimage for Hindus, involves travelling to the holy Mount Kailash and the Mansarovar Lake in Tibet, and the decision to restart it is seen as a symbol of cooperation between the two countries.
In addition to the Yatra, India and China have agreed to hold an early meeting of the India-China Expert Level Mechanism to discuss the resumption of hydro﷽logical data sharing and further cooperation on trans-border rivers. These measures aim to enhance transparency and collaboration on critical environmental issues affecting both nations.
The discussions took place during a two-day visit to Beijing by Vikram Misri, where he participated in the Foreign Secretary-Vice Minister mechanism meeting. This diplomatic engagement aligns with the commitments made by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping during൩ their meeting in Kazan, Russia, in October 2024,♎ where they outlined steps to stabilize and improve bilateral relations.
Both sides also agreed on the importance of people-to-people exchang🧔es, including media and think-tank interactions, to foster be꧟tter mutual understanding.
As part 🎐of these efforts, the countries plan to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the establishment of dipl🦄omatic relations between India and China in 2025, with a series of public diplomacy activities aimed at restoring trust and confidence among their populations.
Further discussions covered the resumption of direct air services between India and China. Both nations agreed to engage in technical talks to update andജ formalise the framework for these flights, ensuring smooth connectivity between the countries.
There was also a foc𝕴us on promoting long-term stability in economic and trade relations, with an emphasis on policy transparency and the gradual reopening of functional exchanges.
The resumption of t༒he Kailash Mansarov🦄ar Yatra and other agreements come in the wake of successful disengagement at two major friction points in Ladakh—Depsang and Demchok—where both nations completed disengagement in October 2024.
꧋The disengagement was followed by the completion of the first round of weekly patrols in November, marking another positive development in th♕e ongoing efforts to ease tensions along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
