Direct flights between India and China have resumed in a hiatus of almost five years.
According to Indian media outlets, an IndiGo flight 6E-1703 carrying approximately 180 passengers from Kolkata, India, landed in Guangzhou, China, on Monday.
Earlier, direct flights between the two countries were suspended at the beginning of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Flights could not resume that same year after a violent clash between Indian and Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley of Ladakh.
However, relations between the two countries are now gradually improving. Last year, the two sides also signed a historic agreement on border patrols.
This year in August, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited China after seven years, and the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi also visited India in the same month.
The Indian government has stated that the resumption of flights will enhance people-to-people contact and help 'gradually normalize bilateral relations'.
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