The sixth round of the China-India Strategic Economic Dialogue has taken place, bringing the prospect of further negotiations on policy coordination, infrastructure building, high-tech industries, energy and other important areas of cooperation between these two Asian giants. As economic and social reform in both China and India meet challenges, the ongoing global trade war only increases pressure.

Gautam Bambawale, former Indian ambassador to China, stated that people in India have great admiration for all the success that China has achieved in economic development. He called for greater interaction and cooperation between the two countries, not only between the governments of China and India, but also between businesses, educational institutions, and most importantly between the people of India and China in a bid to enhance mutual understanding.

He also mentioned that the Shanghai Cooperation Organization is a very important platform and India is very happy to be a part of it.

Given the current trade tensions between China and the U.S., Bambawale clarified that India will not be taking sides between the U.S. on the one hand, or China on the other. But at the same time, India will take positions on certain issues depending on India's national interests. He also pointed out that the triangular relationship between China, the U.S., and India, is going to be the most important relationship for the world, not only on the economic front but also political.

Atul Aneja, associate editor at The Hindu, believes that massive opportunities are arising in the technological sector between China and India. He said that Chinese hardware and Indian software can come together, becoming the cutting edge of technological development during the industry 4.0 era.

Speaking of finding solutions for the existing problems, Aneja emphasized that the approach is neither the balance of power, nor the Western approach, but using the Eastern approach, which has been derived from the Eastern history and civilization.

"We are looking (for) modernization without Westernization, whether it is in the field of environment, whether it is in the field of renewable energy," Aneja added. "For us, the template is not the Western template. We modernize in our civilizational ethos."

Rong Ying, vice president and senior research fellow at the China Institute of International Studies, agreed that there is a huge complementarity between China and India in the field of software technologies. He stated that although the U.S. has jeopardized the global economic order, China and India are still working very hard on maintaining the international trading system.

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