India, China Agree To Resume Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, Direct Flights After 5 Years

Picture courtesy www.theindianwire.com

New Delhi: India and China on Monday took another concrete step towards normalising bilateral ties by deciding to resume Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, which remained suspended since 2020.

The two governments also agreed in principle on resumption of direct flights during a meeting between India’s Foreign secretary Vikram Misri and Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi.

“In this context, the two sides decided to resume the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra in the summer of 2025; the relevant mechanism will discuss the modalities for doing so as per existing agreements. They also agreed to hold an early meeting of the India-China Expert Level Mechanism to discuss resumption of provision of hydrological data and other cooperation pertaining to trans-border rivers,” the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.

Misri was on a two-day visit to Beijing for a meeting of the Foreign Secretary-Vice Minister mechanism between India and China.

The meeting follows agreements made between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping in Russia’s Kazan last October when both sides agreed to take significant steps to stabilise and improve bilateral ties.

During the recent meeting between Misri and Wang, it was agreed to take appropriate measures to promote and facilitate people-to-people changes, including between the media and thinktank interactions.

“The two sides recognise that 2025, being the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and China, should be utilised to redouble public diplomacy efforts to create better awareness about each other and restore mutual trust and confidence among the public. The two sides will conduct a number of commemorative activities to mark this anniversary,” MEA’s statement further said.