India and China should build on "good progress" in normalising the bilateral ties to address border-related issues including de-escalation, and it is essential to avoid "restrictive trade measures and roadblocks", External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Monday during talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.
In his opening remarks at the meeting, Jaishankar said the bilateral relations can develop in a "positive trajectory" on the foundation that differences should not become disputes and nor should competition become a conflict, adding that the ties can be built only on the basis of mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual sensitivity.
The external affairs minister said India hopes "zero tolerance for terrorism" will be upheld at the upcoming meeting of the SCO, noting that its primary mandate is to combat terrorism, separatism and extremism, comments seen as a reference to Pakistan's support to cross-border terrorism.