China's top diplomat calls on India to meet ‘halfway’ on border issue

China's top diplomat urged India to focus on "common interests" and meet China "halfway" to defuse border tensions between Asia's most populous neighbours, the Chinese foreign ministry said Saturday.

Relations between India and China have deteriorated in recent months over their contested Himalayan border, and a visa spat in which the two sides have expelled nearly all of each other's journalists.

"China and India's common interests clearly outweigh their differences," Wang Yi told Indian foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, when the two met Friday on the sidelines of Southeast Asian talks in Jakarta, the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement.

"The two sides should support each other, rather than... suspect each other," Wang added.

India and its northern neighbour are locked in a military standoff along their mostly undemarcated border in the Ladakh region.

Beijing also claims the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh as part of Tibet, and it considers Kashmir a disputed territory.

"It is hoped that the Indian side will meet China halfway and find a solution to the border issue that is acceptable to both sides," Wang said.

The two countries have agreed to hold the next round of military commander-level talks on the border issue "as soon as possible", the ministry statement said.

Despite frosty relations, China is India's second-largest trade partner.

In 2020, India sought to limit investments from China as political tensions heightened between them, with their soldiers clashing in the disputed Himalayan region.

"China is highly concerned about India's recent restrictive measures against Chinese companies," Wang added, while urging New Delhi to provide a "fair, transparent and non-discriminatory business environment".

Top diplomat tells EU not to 'vacillate'

The European Union must not "vacillate" and needs to "clarify" its strategic relationship with Beijing, top diplomat Wang Yi said during a meeting with EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, China's foreign ministry said Saturday.

Germany, Europe's leading economy on Thursday, announced plans to "de-risk" ties with China.

Other EU leaders, weary of China's growing assertiveness and cosy relationship with Russia, have pushed to reduce reliance on Beijing.

"The EU side should... clarify the positioning of the strategic partnership between the two sides, and promote China-EU relations to move forward," Wang told Borrell when they met on the sidelines of Southeast Asian talks in Jakarta on Friday, according to the Chinese foreign ministry statement.

"It should not vacillate, let alone encourage words and deeds that turn the clock back," Wang said.

Some EU member states worry about antagonising China and starting a trade war, while others argue now is the time to act to protect the bloc's economic security.

Brussels wants to define its own approach to Beijing that balances concerns over relying too much on China with maintaining ties with the world's second-largest economy.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in January described the EU's approach to China as "de-risking rather than decoupling" since the bloc still sought to work and trade with Beijing.

"There is no conflict of fundamental interests between China and the EU," Wang said.

On Ukraine, he added: "China supports the establishment of a balanced, effective and sustainable European security architecture," and that Beijing is "committed to promoting peace talks".