China, India to resume direct flights before end of October

China and India will resume direct flights before the end of this month, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun confirmed on Thursday.

Guo said the move reflects the two sides' earnest implementation of the important consensus reached between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during their meeting in Tianjin on August 31.

He described the resumption of flights as a positive step to facilitate friendly exchange between the Chinese and Indian people, whose combined population exceeds 2.8 billion.

China, Guo added, is ready to work with India to view and handle bilateral ties from a strategic and long-term perspective – becoming good-neighborly friends and partners that help each other succeed to better benefit both peoples and make due contributions to maintaining peace and prosperity in Asia and beyond.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar reached 10 outcomes during a meeting in August, agreeing to resume direct flights between the Chinese mainland and India and finalize an updated air services agreement. Both sides also agreed to facilitate visa applications for tourists, businesses, media, and other visitors in both directions.

(With input from Xinhua)