China, India in engagement mode, including on Afghanistan

This has been a year of calm for Sino-Indian relations compared with last year, when a military standoff threatened to escalate into a conflict. Or, so it seemed.

State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met Ajit Doval, India's national security adviser, in Chengdu, Sichuan province, on Nov 24 for talks aimed at ultimately finding a solution to the border issue that has long been a thorn in the side of bilateral relations.

Before this, 20 rounds of meetings under the special representatives' mechanism had been held, beginning in 2003.